When this whole issue is aligned with a harms-based secular/criminal justice, then one MUST consider the welfare, first and foremost, of s/he who is harmed over and above the offender. This is especially true when there are deep imbalances of power between the offender (and their institution) and the offended, as there are in clergy sexual abuse of children, (and adults). It should be fairly obvious that Jesus himself would have taken a harms-based approach rather than a ‘legal/canonical’ approach, especially when it comes to children, or those whose lives have nowhere near the levels of privilege or power, and who are, in reality, at the mercy of the enormous political, economic, psycho/spiritual power of their own ruling priestly system. Of course, the legal rights of the accused have to be justly considered but in this case, that of an actual confession ‘of guilt’ in a confessional context, then the above should apply. The same should apply to all sins which are also harmful crimes.