Nuns alleging abuse by former Jesuit Marko Rupnik plead with Francis for investigation
Laura Sgro, from left, Gloria Branciani, and Mirjam Kovac, former members of the Loyola community of sisters co-founded by Marko Rupnik, during a news conference in Rome on February 21.
Ex-nuns who say they suffered abuse at the Loyola religious community co-founded by former Jesuit priest Marko Rupnik asked Pope Francis during an emotional news conference Wednesday to investigate the church’s cover-up of the alleged abuse and publish the findings.
“These events open a window to a much wider reality,” said Gloria Branciani, 59, who claimed sexual abuse, abuse of conscience and spiritual abuse for years at the hands of Rupnik. The news conference in Rome marked the first time she has spoken publicly about the matter.
“I wish to break this cycle of silence and loneliness that I found myself in for many years. A deafening silence that still engulfs many more of us,” she added.
