Following the dismissal of Father Marko Rupnik from the Society of Jesus, the head of the art center he founded came to his defense.
Maria Campatelli, head of the Centro Aletti (Aletti Center), said that Father Rupnik was the victim of a “lynching” that resulted from “defamatory” allegations.
Campatelli also said that Father Rupnik sought to leave the Society of Jesus in January and that his superiors “concocted” the violation of the vow of obedience that became grounds for his dismissal. Father Johan Verschueren, SJ, Rupnik’s former superior, confirmed that the priest had sought to leave the order, but disputed Campatelli’s version of events.