Pope grants audience to author exposing opus dei secrets
Vatican City—In a move that has sent ripples through Catholic circles, Pope Leo granted a private audience to Gareth Gore, the author of the controversial book Opus, just weeks after its publication. The meeting, confirmed by Vatican sources, raises questions about the Holy See’s response to increasingly serious allegations against the highly secretive Opus Dei, a religious order founded over a century ago.
A decade of investigation uncovers a shadowy network
Gore’s meticulously researched work details a web of alleged abuses within Opus Dei, ranging from psychological manipulation and financial impropriety to accusations of child grooming and human trafficking. The author, a former financial journalist, stumbled upon the organization while investigating the collapse of Banco Popular in 2017—a spectacular failure that baffled European banking experts. Gore’s investigation revealed that Opus Dei had effectively hijacked the bank since the 1940s, using it as a “personal cash machine” to finance its global expansion.
The book traces a disturbing pattern of influence peddling, alleging Opus Dei’s close collaboration with Francisco Franco’s dictatorship in Spain and its subsequent support for right-wing causes worldwide. Gore posits that the Catholic Church, reliant on Opus Dei’s financial backing in the 1970s, effectively allowed the organization to operate largely outside Vatican oversight, a situation he believes enabled many of the alleged abuses.
The allegations include the use of private confessions as leverage, the drugging of members, and the recruitment of vulnerable young women who were allegedly cut off from their families and forced to surrender their salaries to the organization, potentially meeting the UN definition of human trafficking. Federal prosecutors in Argentina are currently investigating senior Opus Dei leaders on these charges.
A saint’s shadow and vatican complicity
The rapid canonization of Opus Dei’s founder, Josemaría Escrivá, in 2002, despite mounting abuse allegations and Vatican dissent, further complicates the narrative. Gore argues that Opus Dei could not have flourished without the Vatican’s tacit complicity, making the Pope’s invitation all the more perplexing.
Gore’s account paints a picture of a deeply hierarchical organization where numeraries, the most devout members, live a life of servitude and self-flagellation, practicing ritual fasting and self-punishment. Claims of mental illness being treated with a cocktail of antidepressants, sedatives, and even Rohypnol add a chilling dimension to the allegations.
The pope’s signal and future scrutiny
The author, who met with Pope Leo shortly after the Vatican audience, described the encounter as “remarkably positive,” noting that the Pope asked incisive questions and allowed cameras to record the meeting—a seemingly deliberate signal to Opus Dei that the allegations are being taken seriously.
“I think [the pope] quite clearly wanted to send a signal to Opus Dei that he’s taking these allegations seriously,” Gore stated. He believes a full, independent investigation into the allegations is the next logical step, and that the Vatican’s continued reliance on Opus Dei's influence risks shielding the organization from accountability. The trial of Banco Popular’s former leadership, scheduled to begin in Spain’s national court in 2027, promises to shed further light on the organization’s financial dealings and potential criminal involvement.
With a foothold in the highest echelons of power, including influence over figures within the conservative movement and the U.S. Supreme Court, Opus Dei represents a formidable challenge to any effort at reform. The question now is whether Pope Leo's acknowledgement of the concerns will translate into meaningful action, or if the organization will continue to operate with impunity within the Catholic Church.