The Vatican stated on Wednesday that a canonical trial against Rev. Marko Ivan Rupnik, a Slovenian artist and former Jesuit whose mosaics decorate Vatican chapels and churches, remains active. This followed a report from an Italian blog claiming an acquittal had been reached in the case. Vatican officials characterized that report as unfounded and said judges were continuing to review documentation from involved dioceses, the Jesuit order, affected parties, and media sources.
Rupnik faces accusations of spiritual, sexual, and psychological abuse spanning from the 1990s onward. The case became public in late 2022 when Italian media outlets reported allegations from women and nuns that had previously been dismissed by church leadership. The Jesuits acknowledged that Rupnik was briefly excommunicated in 2020 after using the confessional to absolve a woman with whom he had been sexually involved, which the church considers one of its most serious offenses. He was expelled from the Jesuit order in 2023. Pope Francis later waived the statute of limitations on older allegations, allowing the Vatican to open a formal canonical trial.
The case has become sensitive for the Vatican due to suggestions that Rupnik received protection from his superiors and church hierarchy for over three decades. Supporters of Rupnik, including the director of the Rome-based Aletti Center he founded, have characterized the allegations as false and defamatory. However, attorneys representing five accusers have expressed frustration with the secrecy of the canonical process, noting that victims have received no information about the investigation’s status despite two years of requests.
The Vatican defended the confidentiality of the proceedings, stating that transparency could harm those involved and that canonical trials operate under church law rather than civil or criminal standards. According to canon law, victims function as third-party witnesses with no right to participate in proceedings, access case files, or receive updates on investigations. Under a 2019 reform by Pope Francis, victims are entitled only to learn the final outcome of their case. International commissions investigating clergy abuse have repeatedly criticized these procedures for potentially retraumatizing survivors through their opacity.
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