Rupnik has been accused by about two dozen women, mostly former nuns, of sexually abusing them during the past three decades. He has not publicly responded to the accusations.
Vatican News, an official news outlet of the Holy See, published an image of a mosaic of St. Irenaeus made by Rupnik with a note that the original is in the office of the papal nuncio in Paris.
Vatican News also published images of Rupnik’s art on May 26, June 1, and June 7, as the National Catholic Register, CNA’s sister news partner, has reported.
Paolo Ruffini, prefect of the Dicastery for Communication, defended using Rupnik’s art during an appearance in Atlanta on June 21, arguing that removing it wouldn’t help his accusers.
“I think that, as Christians, we have to understand that the closeness to the victims is important, but I don’t know that this is the way of healing: again and again talking about this problem of art that is healing others maybe, I don’t know, but maybe, yes. Maybe yes,” Ruffini said, as the Register reported.
“There are people that are praying in sanctuaries of many churches all around the world” in front of Rupnik’s mosaics, he said.
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