Bengaluru: Archbishop M. Soosa Pakiam, President, Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council (KCBC) has written to George Kurian, The Member Secretary, National Minority Commission of India regarding a media report on the submission of a recommendation by the Chairperson of the Central Women’s Commission to the Home Ministry of India to ban the Sacrament of Confession in the Indian Church.

The letter read, “We strongly feel the recommendation unwarranted and intended to tarnish the credibility of the Church.”

It is unfortunate that people in responsible positions make such statements and make such move which deeply wound the religious sentiments of the Christian Minority Community.

The Catholic Church, like the Oriental Orthodox Churches across the world, has a two thousand year old history of sanctity and integrity in keeping the seal of confession even at the cost of lives and reputation of priests. We are aware that an allegation has come up about certain priests who have entered into immoral relationship with a married woman belonging to the Orthodox Church and a complaint was filed by the husband of the victim. The allegation is being investigated.

Similarly, a bishop of the Catholic hierarchy and a religious sister under his canonical jurisdiction have filed separate police complaints which are also in the process of investigation. The Churches welcome just and impartial enquiry in all the three complaints, the truth being brought out and justice implemented. But a recommendation by the chairperson of the women’s commission to ban the Christian practice of confession is beyond her fort folio and unconstitutional.

The Archbishop has also appealed to the National Minority Commission of India to look into the issue and bring the concern before the appropriate authorities and do the needful to alleviate the grievances of the concerned Churches.

Bishops of Various Churches Also Join the Protest

As per the reports that the National Women’s Commission Chairperson Ms. Rekha Sharma has made a recommendation to the Union Home Ministry to ban the Sacrament of Confession among Christians in India is shocking not only to the Christians but to all who believe in the freedom of religion guaranteed by the Constitution of India. The recommendation is supposed to be based on the Chairperson’s investigation in two separate incidents of allegation of atrocity against women in the Catholic and Orthodox Churches of India. Instead of reporting the findings of the Commission, the Chairperson has ventured into something which is totally out of her prerogative. She has also done this without any consultation with the Christian Churches and communities and without considering the moral, theological or psychological aspects of the centuries old spiritual practice of confession among the Christians.

The Chairperson has crossed the boundaries of her constitutional powers. It is an attack on the Christian faith and spiritual practice. “We strongly feel that the recommendation is unwarranted and violates the honor and credibility of the Christian community. We suspect communal and political motives behind this unconstitutional interference into the internal spiritual affairs of the Church.”

Confession, according to the Christian faith, is a Sacrament. It is a way to spiritual progress and salvation. It is a practice inherited from the early Christian communities. The sanctity of the seal of confession was held so high in the history of the Church that there are instances of priests having sacrificed their lives to protect it. An allegation that decades ago a priest of the Orthodox Syrian Church misused the information he got from the confession of a girl to sexually abuse her along with two of his priest friends for several years even after her marriage is now being investigated by the local police. The National Women’s Commission based on this incident conducted its own inquiries and has come up with the strange recommendation to ban the Holy Sacrament of Confession among various Christian denominations and communities of India. The bishops believe that motive of the Commission is to spread tension and religious unrest among the minorities and to create division and polarization among people for political gains. We strongly protest this unbecoming move from the part of a person in a responsible position of the Government, said Fr. Varghese Vallikkatt, Deputy Secretary General and Spokesperson, KCBC, in a press note.