Members of the self-proclaimed “The Group”, a spiritual community of the Society of Jesus for catechism, retreats and prayers in Madrid, received an official letter last Monday on letterhead from their organization. In it, the spiritual guides told them that the rumors they had heard and questioned were true: the famous priest JM had been denounced in the past for abuse while he was a religious there, when he had permanent contact with hundreds of children. , young people and adults, many of whom he accompanied on retreat and alone.
“In 2015, the former Provincial of the Society of Jesus received two complaints against JM for inappropriate behavior in the context of spiritual accompaniment while he was a priest of the Community of Catholic Groups of Loyola – as this is also called community based in the country. Salamanca district. Subsequently, four new testimonies were received,” indicates the letter to which elDiario.es had access.
What is “inappropriate behavior”? The Society of Jesus responded to questions from this media by saying that it was “a complaint for inappropriate behavior” and that “it must be understood that the notion of abuse encompasses very different behaviors”. They add that “there were no legal proceedings” and repeat that “in this case it was inappropriate behavior in the support relationship”, without specifying further or referring to the five other testimonies which the letter speaks of.
The events reported predate 2009, the year in which the religious left this community, and concerned minors, but also adults. What had the Society of Jesus done? In the recently sent letter, dated the 23rd of this month, the prayer group explains that in 2015 an investigation was opened “which resulted in a canonical decree with measures for 5 years.”
Among the measures was “the explicit ban on JM from any pastoral activity with minors, as well as from participation in the activities of Loyola groups as well as from any spiritual accompaniment”. elDiario.es asked the company where he had been transferred, without obtaining a precise answer. Among adults, although abuse or “inappropriate behavior” was also reported, it was not specifically separated.
An open secret
This is the case of Miguel (fictitious name, because he prefers not to be identified), a member of the community during the years when JM guided the young people: “This happened to me when I was already a university student, major. , in the early 2000s, during a retreat, I accompanied him individually during the days of silence. During a few sessions he hugged me in an unusual way, he blew on me as if he was panting. He put his hand under my shirt and started feeling my back. On top of that, there were days of silence, during which speaking was not allowed, so the context was very favorable for someone like that.
At that time, religious people were not officially reported to the ecclesiastical authorities and had carte blanche in all these sessions, even if it was an open secret. “Many knew it,” Miguel said. “I actually remember telling a religious person about it and he did absolutely nothing, there were really no consequences.”
In the letter sent to their community, the Jesuits admit that in 2021 the case was re-examined and that everything remained the same, despite the fact that social awareness of the abuses was greater, public complaints increased and the Vatican had requested more checks. “The measures have been reviewed and today the pastoral ban and accompaniment of minors are maintained, as well as participation in activities and it is requested that the contact maintained be personal and not apostolic”. When asked what it means to allow personal contact or where he is currently located, the company doesn’t give a concrete answer.
Both the Church’s recent plan against abuse and the specific protocol of the Society of Jesus, posted online, require helping to denounce or compensate victims in various ways, including financially. According to the official letter, “in one of the cases, the Society of Jesus facilitated the victim’s request for reparation.” Otherwise, we know nothing. The Jesuits also did not answer specific questions on this subject.
The letter also includes the verbatim words of the current Provincial, leader of the Company since 2023, in which he asks for forgiveness and justifies the actions of the organization: “Even if this revelation and the shadow it represents hurts now , it doesn’t cancel much. of what In J.’s life, it has also been dedication, service and the desire to do things right when sharing the Gospel. As the current provincial of J., on behalf of the Society of Jesus, I ask your forgiveness, as we did at the time with the victims,” the letter says.
It also shows that the attacker implicitly assumed his guilt: “In accordance with the wishes expressed by the complainants, J. never knew the origin of the accusations, but he showed from the first moment a firm desire to review his past behavior and the deep roots of it, which involved a process of personal revision.
With that and all, he has not been expelled from the Church or denounced, and he continues his spiritual life without any further public or legal consequences. “At all times, victims’ wishes have been met, regarding anonymity and reparation processes when requested. But it is not up to us to give more information on this subject,” official Jesuit sources conclude generically.
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