VATICAN CITY — In a recent development, Cardinal Juan Luis Cipriani Thorne, the former Archbishop of Lima and the inaugural cardinal of Opus Dei, has confirmed that the Vatican imposed sanctions on him back in 2019 in response to allegations of sexual abuse. However, Cipriani firmly denied any wrongdoing in a letter he released following revelations reported by Spain’s El País newspaper regarding his case and others related to clergy sexual abuse within the Spanish-speaking Catholic Church. He labeled the accusations as “completely false.”
In the letter, Cipriani declared, “I haven’t committed any crime, nor have I sexually abused anyone in 1983, neither before nor after,” emphasizing his innocence regarding the allegations. At 81 years old, he stepped down from leading the Peruvian church in 2019 after two decades in the position. As the first cardinal associated with the conservative Opus Dei movement, established by Spanish priest Josemaría Escrivá in 1928, he represents a group dedicated to integrating spirituality into everyday life, comprising over 90,000 members across 70 countries.
The fresh allegations against Cipriani come amid significant changes in the Peruvian church. Recently, Pope Francis decided to dissolve the influential Peruvian-based movement known as Sodalitium Christianae Vitae after concluding a Vatican investigation that unveiled a series of abuses involving its founder, as well as mismanagement and spiritual abuse tied to its leadership. In a statement released Saturday, the Episcopal Conference of Peru indicated that it is awaiting official documentation to proceed with the dissolution process and expressed solidarity with victims affected by the Sodalitium group.
The church’s statement regretted the unfortunate events that have transpired and thanked those who have exposed the abuses, allowing bishops to gain awareness of the troubling circumstances. Cipriani had been at the forefront of the church when the first public allegations against Sodalitium emerged in the year 2000, stemming from former member José Enrique Escardó’s articles. As the archbishop, Cipriani was the one present when formal accusations against Sodalitium were submitted to the church in 2011. While he maintained that he addressed those allegations appropriately, it wasn’t until investigative journalists Pedro Salinas and Paola Ugaz published their book “Half Monks, Half Soldiers” in 2015 that further momentum developed on the case.
Fast forward a decade, and after 25 years since Escardó first alerted the public, he had a meeting with Pope Francis on Friday. Following their discussion of Sodalitium’s dissolution, Escardó conveyed feeling heard and relieved, indicating a significant burden lifted as he voiced the pain of numerous victims. He attributed the church’s sluggish response to the Sodalitium issue, along with the challenges faced by victims speaking out, to the group’s high-level protection within the church hierarchy in both Rome and Lima, stating, “Cardinal Cipriani was the Opus Dei cardinal that Sodalitium needed.”
In his letter addressing the article by El País, Cipriani revealed that he was informed of the allegation against him in August 2018 without additional context. Subsequently, he reached the mandatory retirement age of 75 for bishops on December 28, 2018, and his resignation was accepted shortly after on January 25, 2019. He indicated that by December 18, 2019, he had learned from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith of the imposed sanctions that constrained his priestly duties and required him to maintain a stable residence outside Peru. Currently residing in both Madrid and Rome, he also noted that the Vatican had requested his silence, which he adhered to until recently.
Moving forward, Cipriani reported that he met with Pope Francis on February 4, 2020, leading the pope to allow him to resume some pastoral roles again, providing him opportunities to preach and administer sacraments. He concluded his letter by expressing his prayers for his accuser and for all those who suffered abuse at the hands of clergy, reiterating his complete innocence.
Opus Dei acknowledged being informed of the complaint back in 2018, while also admitting that they could have handled the alleged victim’s situation better. The vicar of Opus in Peru, the Rev. Ángel Gómez-Hortigüela, stated that he had declined to meet the alleged victim in 2018 since the matter had already been brought to the Vatican’s attention, claiming that the Vatican holds exclusive authority over investigating accusations against cardinals. He referenced the letter that the alleged victim had arranged to be delivered to Pope Francis by Juan Carlos Cruz, a Chilean survivor of abuse.
Gómez-Hortigüela expressed regret for not offering the alleged victim a personal and supportive interaction at that time, realizing now that it could have been beneficial, a sentiment echoing their regard for the feelings of victims within Opus Dei.
