This analysis was prompted by a post made by Barbara Stone to FORKNI-L on 5 July 2013. You can find the full text of her letter archived on Knightwind's Nook here.

Barbara points out that, although Nick is sure that his soul is damned because of all the people he has killed as a vampire, this conviction is not based on tenets that are specifically Catholic: "Thou shalt not kill" is a stricture that is hardly limited to just the one sect. On the other hand, his belief that his redemption requires him to atone through good works, rather than simply rely just on God's good will, is something that does derive from his faith. She then goes on to the specific question that led me to write.

Because of length, my discussion was sent to the list in two parts, both mailed in the morning of July 19th. I have slightly edited what I wrote at that time.

On Fri, 5 Jul 2013 09:16:01, Barbara Stone wrote:

> What is the history of the sacred secrecy of the confessional?
> Does that go back to 1228? Assuming that it does, it seems to
> me that his and Stonetree's disagreement has less to do with
> religion than with frustrated detective working a case v. police
> captain who must uphold the rules by which the detection game
> is played.

As far as the dramatic conflict between Nick and Stonetree is concerned, I think you're right. However, you bring up history....

This is actually quite an interesting question. According to the Wikipedia article on "Priest-penitent privilege", the rule that priests mustn't repeat what they hear in confession goes back at least to the early 12th century, a century before Nick was brought over. He would therefore be familiar with the "seal of the confessional", since it held during his lifetime. As Wikipedia describes the church's position, "In a criminal matter, a priest may encourage the penitent to surrender to authorities. However, this is the extent of the leverage they wield. They may not directly or indirectly disclose the matter to civil authorities themselves."

Nevertheless, the Wikipedia article immediately goes on to say, "The doctrine of priest-penitent privilege is respected to varying degrees by the laws of different nations."

One need consider, then, the interaction between church law and civil law. Therein (sort-of) lies the conflict in "For I Have Sinned". Rochefort is bound by church law to say nothing that might betray the penitent. It does not follow, though, that he is similarly bound by Canadian law. Resorting once again to Wikipedia: "religious communication is covered by common law" in the Province of Ontario.

So what does common law say on the matter of the seal of the confessional?
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