The Vatican has firmly rejected reports circulating online that Father Marko Ivan Rupnik has been acquitted in his ongoing canonical criminal trial, stating that no decision has been reached and that the judicial process remains active.
According to EWTN News and LifeSiteNews, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni, director of the Holy See Press Office, dismissed recent claims that judges overseeing the case had reached a verdict, calling the reports “absolutely unfounded” and “entirely unfounded.”
Bruni explained that the canonical proceedings are still underway and that the tribunal continues to review evidence from multiple sources.
“The assessment of the case is still underway, and the panel is examining the documentation received from the dioceses concerned, the Jesuits, the persons involved, and the press,” Bruni said, according to LifeSiteNews.
The Vatican also emphasized that the proceedings remain confidential. Bruni said the Church cannot release information while the judicial process is ongoing in order to preserve due process and avoid causing additional harm to those involved.
“During the trial, as in any judicial proceeding, information regarding the proceedings underway cannot be shared in any way,” Bruni said, according to EWTN News.
He added that the tribunal will seek any additional evidence it considers necessary before reaching a final judgment.
Father Rupnik, a former Jesuit priest, has been accused by numerous women religious of psychological, spiritual, and sexual abuse dating back to the 1990s while serving as a spiritual adviser to a religious community in Ljubljana, Slovenia. According to EWTN News, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith first received a complaint in 2021 and instructed the Society of Jesus to conduct an investigation through an external investigator.
The Jesuits later submitted their findings to the dicastery. Although the allegations were initially determined to be outside the applicable statute of limitations under canon law, Pope Francis ordered the case reopened in 2023 after waiving those limitations, allowing a canonical criminal trial to proceed.
According to EWTN News, the Jesuits also acknowledged that Rupnik had been excommunicated in 2020 after absolving a woman with whom he had engaged in sexual activity. They stated that he repented and that the excommunication was lifted shortly afterward.
LifeSiteNews reported that some online outlets recently claimed a five-judge Vatican panel had acquitted Rupnik of allegations involving “violence” connected to the abuse accusations while suggesting additional proceedings might still follow. The Vatican, however, categorically denied that any such ruling had been issued.
Bruni also clarified that the Church’s tribunal can only determine responsibility under canon law. Any potential criminal liability under civil law remains the responsibility of the appropriate civil authorities where the alleged offenses occurred.
According to EWTN News, Bruni said Rupnik “remains subject to the laws of the countries in which the alleged crimes may have been committed,” and that any applicable civil statutes of limitations are determined independently of ecclesiastical authority.
The Vatican’s statement follows growing concern over the pace of the canonical proceedings. According to EWTN News, attorney Laura Sgrò, who represents five of Rupnik’s accusers, recently wrote to Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández expressing her clients’ frustration over the lack of transparency surrounding the case. She later described the Vatican’s public clarification as “necessary.”
The Church has not indicated when the tribunal expects to conclude its examination or issue a final ruling.
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