One of the first women who accused a once-exalted Jesuit artist of spiritual, psychological and sexual abuse went public Wednesday to demand transparency from the Vatican and a full accounting of the hierarchs who covered for him for 30 years. Gloria Branciani, 59, appeared at a news conference with one of the most prominent Vatican-accredited lawyers in Rome, Laura Sgro, to tell her story in public for the first time. Rupnik has not commented publicly about the allegations, but his Rome art studio has said the allegations were unproven and media reports about the case a defamatory “lynching.”
Pope Francis praised the Argentine saint as “a model of apostolic fervor and boldness” for traveling “thousands of miles on foot through deserts and dangerous roads” to bring people to God.
A group of Catholics in an Indian archdiocese hailed the resignations of two senior leaders of their Eastern rite Syro-Malabar Church amid an ongoing crisis
An earthquake killed at least 157, injured scores and made thousands homeless in Nepal, prompting the government and charities to rush aid to the affected
Jerome Lalemant, the second Superior of the Huron mission, said there were so few converts because no Jesuit had been martyred yet. It is stated more than once that if the “glorious crown” of martyrdom was denied to them, the mission itself could be seen as a living martyrdom.