Rupnik’s works are widespread
In addition to the Aparecida Shrine, the works of Rupnik and the Aletti Center are present in multiple churches around the world, including the Redemptoris Mater Chapel of the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican, the St. Padre Pio Shrine in Pietrelcina, Italy, as well as in Fátima, Portugal, and Lourdes, France.
On March 31, 2023, the bishop of Lourdes, Jean-Marc Micas, announced that he had created a commission to evaluate whether Rupnik’s mosaics should be removed from the Lourdes Shrine in consideration of the suffering of victims of abuse.
In February of this year, Micas told CNA he has received a “a pile of letters — people very angry because the mosaics are still there and other people who were very angry at the idea we could remove them,” he said, so this is a “very, very difficult decision to make.”
The dedication of Rupnik’s mosaics in Aparecida comes at a time when many, including the St. John Paul II National Shrine in Washington, D.C., are considering the possibility of removing his works out of respect for the victims.
At the time of publication of this article, the press office of the Aparecida Shrine has not responded to specific questions from ACI Digital, CNA’s Portuguese-language news partner, on the matter but sent a statement to the agency explaining that “the work of covering with mosaics the façades of the Basilica of Our Lady of Aparecida continues under the leadership and execution of the Aletti Center.”
“Since 2020,” the statement continues, “the studio has been run by the Italian artist and doctor in theology, Maria Campatelli, and has 12 women and nine men in its management team, in addition to dozens of artists of different nationalities, who are directly involved in the project.”
“Recently, the Vicariate of Rome, to which the studio is subordinate, after a canonical visit, issued an opinion attesting that ‘clearly there is a healthy community life in the Aletti Center, free of any particular critical problem,’” the statement concludes.
However, some of Rupnik’s alleged victims expressed their outrage and consternation following that report, saying the evaluation “ridicules the pain of the victims.”
This story was first published by ACI Digital, CNA’s Portuguese-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by ACI Prensa and CNA.
Nathália Queiroz de Carvalho Lima is certified in Spanish by the Cervantes Institute and has worked as a translator for seven years at ACI Digital. She has experience writing religious content for Catholic media in Portuguese and Spanish.