ROME, (Reuters) – The Roman Catholic Jesuit order said today it had expelled Father Marko Ivan Rupnik, an internationally-known religious artist accused of sexual, psychological and spiritual abuse.
A statement said Rupnik, whose case has shaken the Vatican and the worldwide religious order of which Pope Francis is a member, was dismissed for his “obstinate” refusal to obey the Jesuit superior general, Father Arturo Sosa.
About 25 people, mostly former nuns, have accused Rupnik of various types of abuse, either when he was a spiritual director of a community of nuns in his native Slovenia about 30 years ago or after he moved to Rome to pursue his career as an artist.
Repeated attempts to reach Rupnik through his school for religious art in Rome were unsuccessful and he did not responded to phone messages seeking comment. His whereabouts were unknown, although he was believed to be in Rome.
The order said Rupnik, who has not publicly responded to the allegations, has 30 days to appeal the decision.
Rupnik has specialised in mosaics and came to prominence when the late Pope John Paul II commissioned him to redesign a chapel in the Vatican between 1996 and 1999. He has since designed chapels around the world.
Allegations against Rupnik began surfacing in Italian media late last year, after which the Jesuit headquarters acknowledged that he had been banned in 2019 from hearing confessions and leading spiritual retreats.
One ex-nun told the Italian investigative newspaper Domani how he used what she called psychological control over her.
She said he forced her into sexual acts, and deployed “cruel psychological, emotional and spiritual aggression” to “destroy” her, particularly after she refused to have three-way sex.
The Jesuits and the Vatican’s doctrinal department have come under criticism for their handling of the case. The order disclosed under media pressure last year that the Vatican investigated Rupnik and ruled that some of the alleged abuse fell beyond the statute of limitations.
Last December Sosa, the Jesuit leader, said nothing had been hidden about the case. But the order subsequently disclosed that Rupnik had earlier been temporarily excommunicated by the Vatican.
That case involved the “absolution of an accomplice” in confession, referring to when a priest has sex with someone and then absolves the person of the sin.
The information released by the Jesuits so far has not shown any move to defrock him.
