European data rules may allow erasure of baptismal records, EU court adviser says

Europe’s data protection rules may require the erasure of personal data from Catholic baptismal records in some cases when an individual requests it, a top European Union official said Thursday.

The Oct. 1 opinion from Laila Medina, the advocate general at the Court of Justice of the European Union, could prove decisive in a dispute between the Catholic Church and European leaders over whether or not baptismal records can be preserved in Church registers.

The Court of Justice is currently considering the case, which was brought by the Brussels Court of Appeal and which asked for clarification about whether the Diocese of Ghent’s refusal to erase names from baptismal records when requested is in violation of Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation.

Catholic leadership has expressed strong concerns over the issue. The Commission of the Bishops' Conferences of the European Union said in September that baptismal records are not merely a “list of members” of the Church but rather serve as a “record of historical events.”

Allowing baptismal record erasures would “constitute an infringement on the substance of the sacrament” and would “seriously impede” the…