TWO OF FATHER RUPNIK’S ALLEGED VICTIMS SPEAK PUBLICLY FOR FIRST TIME
(CNA) – Two alleged abuse victims of mosaic artist Father Marko Rupnik spoke publicly for the first time Wednesday, detailing the tactics the former Jesuit allegedly used to manipulate them.
Italian Gloria Branciani and Slovenian-born Marjiam Kovač, former sisters of the now-dissolved Loyola Community in Slovenia, shared their stories at a crowded press conference in the Rome offices of the trade union for Italian journalists.
They were joined by their high-profile lawyer, Laura Sgrò, who has represented clients in the VatiLeaks scandal as well as the family of Emanuela Orlandi, an Italian girl who disappeared under mysterious circumstances decades ago.
Branciani, 59, reflected on how her introduction into the community was propelled by a desire to grow her spiritual life but wound up being subjected to spiritual, psychological, and physical abuse, which amounted to “the total loss of my identity.”
Detailing the dynamics of Rupnik’s alleged manipulation, Branciani recounted how this multifaceted abuse reflected a deeper and more intimate “abuse of conscience” and was a total violation of the deep intimacy of her spiritual life.
She alleged that Rupnik used her interest in art and culture “to put pressure on my personality,” which allowed him to affect a change in her “ideas, the way of thinking, the way of behaving, the way of dressing.”
“So with an imposition of his spiritual, theological, and artistic vision, he had an ever greater power over me, an exclusive power,” Branciani said.
In one example, she claimed that while in his art studio, which was also the place where their spiritual direction sessions were held, Rupnik, while painting, was “staring at parts of my body” and afterward performed a sexually suggestive gesture on Branciani, which Rupnik allegedly likened to an act of biblical divine revelation that expressed “the wisdom of the father.”
Rupnik has been at the center of a nearly six-year-long scandal centered on his alleged abuse of over 20 religious sisters spanning across three decades. After initially deciding in October 2022 not to pursue sanctions against Rupnik because the statute of limitation had expired, the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) reopened the case after Pope Francis lifted the statute of limitations in October 2023. That decision came on the heels of public outcry over the news that Rupnik had been incardinated in a diocese in Slovenia where he could continue his priestly ministry.
According to Kovač, 20 sisters were abused out of a community of 40 women.
For Kovač, the press conference was an opportunity to break the “silence” that victims have faced, which she characterized as “a rubber wall, which bounces off every attempt to cure the unhealthy situation.”
“We are sorry because the institutions, instead of taking inspiration from our experience to review their way of acting, continue to close themselves in silence,” she said.
Following their remarks, Sgrò, their lawyer, said she hoped the example of the two women would encourage other victims to speak out to civil as well as Church authorities.
PAPAL BASILICAS LAUNCH ‘FROM TOURIST TO PILGRIM’ MINISITE AS JUBILEE GUIDE
The four Papal Basilicas and the Dicastery for Communication team up to launch a new minisite to serve as a spiritual and artistic guide to the Basilicas and help the faithful turn “From Tourist to Pilgrim”.
As the Church continues through the Year of Prayer toward the 2025 Jubilee, the Vatican Dicastery for Communication has launched a minisite dedicated to the four papal basilicas: https://basilicas.vatican.va/en.html
“From Tourist to Pilgrim” seeks to introduce the Basilicas of St. Peter, St. John Lateran, St. Paul Outside the Walls, and St. Mary Major to younger audiences through content geared to their tastes.
According to a press release issued on Thursday, the website leans heavily on the medium of “voice” to convey the beauty and history of these sacred spaces and the artistic masterpieces that fill them.
Professionals engaged in art curation, excavation and restoration projects, along with religious men and women who minister to pilgrims every day, tell the stories of the papal basilicas in their own words.
“Through the warmth and enthusiasm of their voices, they act as ‘witnesses’ and share their love for everything the four Papal Basilicas represent,” according to the statement.
The minisite draws on the symbol of the table, populated by the saints and artists whose lives and art shaped the Basilicas.
“The table,” reads the communique, “offers a space where not only food but glances, stories, and experiences are shared, thus inviting the visitor to pause for a moment and dedicate some time to a brief moment of reflection.” TO CONTINUE: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2024-02/dicastery-communication-from-tourist-to-pilgrim-minisite.html
Joan's Rome 