A spokesperson for the National Eucharistic Congress told The Pillar that perpetual pilgrims on the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage have been directed not to pose for photographs June 8 in front of mosaics designed and created by Rupnik, who was expelled from the Jesuit order last year, and who has been accused of sexually abusing some 30 religious sisters.
Some of the allegations against the priest involve claims of sexual abuse which reportedly occurred directly in the context of designing and creating his works of art.
According to the spokesperson, pilgrims have also been instructed not to go together into the John Paul II Shrine’s Luminous Mysteries Chapel, in which prominent murals were designed and created by Rupnik.
They will also reportedly avoid wearing identifiable National Eucharistic Pilgrimage clothing in the chapel, apparently to avoid the controversy surrounding Rupnik’s works of art.
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Two questions: who was forcing so many institutions within the Church to buy this crap art? Where was the money for the art going? As part of this question, how much was spent on the art? Rupnik being a sexual predator of nuns is appalling, but PopeWatch suspects that Rupnik was not the only one making bank on his bug eyed monstrosities, and that some clerics were getting a fat cut of imposing this crap art on the Church.
Seems to be past time that the “serious journalists” at the Pillar started asking those same questions, and keep pushing until we get some answers.
In all fairness a DC Knights council did contact the Knights of Columbus HQ whose Shrine this belongs to and asked them to cover Rupniks “art” until it is replaced and Pillar called for them to offer an apology to Rupniks victims. They have sat on it for over a year with no action. It’s quite a job to replace it.
The Knights of Columbus have his artwork in their headquarters…Agree that’s it’s almost like there is some political connection between Rupniks people and the (faceless men) of the Church. Are there no other current practicing lay artists they could choose from…? Rhetorically speaking…asking Pilgrims to “look away” during a Eucharistic pilgrimage is ridiculous.
It’s not really clear to me just who is directing that the pilgrims be instructed to pretend Rupnik’s wretched ‘art’ isn’t there. Either the person(s) who made that call have never heard of the Streisand Effect— in which case they have failed completely; or they know perfectly well that their absurd directions would draw even more attention to how wrong it is to have that horrible man’s hack ‘art’ anywhere near a sacred space— in which case, I’d like to shake their hand.
Are there no unused felt banners anywhere that could finally be put to good use?