"Opus Dei has spent decades seeking to infiltrate the American conservative movement and has poured money and resources into penetrating Washington's corridors of power”

Great piece from @Newsweek

newsweek.com/pope-political… Gore noted that Pope Francis had been in a "standoff" with the group, which was set to vote on new statutes over the coming weeks. Prior to his death, the group put a hold on the new statute votes.

When he died on Monday, Pope Francis had been on the cusp of signing into canon law a huge reform of Opus Dei, an abusive cult at the heart of the Church

Those reforms may now never happen

A THREAD 🧵 Opus Dei was due to vote on a new set of statutes, which have been rammed down its throat by the Vatican, at a meeting this week

But, within hours of Francis’ death, the vote was quietly cancelled

catholicnewsagency.com/news/263607/op…

The Far Right is Coming for the Vatican

Excellent piece from the fantastic @ninaburleigh

open.substack.com/pub/americanpo… “The ultra-conservative wing of the US Catholic Church – a group made up of cardinals, bishops, priests and wealthy individuals – has spent years preparing for this precise moment”

Francis did more than any previous pope to address the abuse and exploitative of Opus Dei, a manipulative cult at the heart of the Catholic Church

But his death leaves that work unfinished. So, what’s next?

A THREAD 🧵 It all started out so well

Early on in his papacy, Francis saw Opus Dei as an ally in his efforts to clean up the Vatican after years of scandal and corruption

He picked several Opus Dei figures to oversee those efforts

Do you think @markwahlberg realises that @HallowApp, the Catholic prayer app he fronts, is actively promoting Opus Dei – a group accused of human trafficking, child grooming, drugging its members and spiritual abuse – this Lent?

🧵 A THREAD

foxnews.com/media/mark-wah… Opus Dei has been crowing about the partnership with Hallow and Wahlberg all week.

Hallow launched its Lent challenge on Wednesday.

This year, it is "inspired" by the The Way, a book written by Opus Dei's controversial founder Josemaría Escrivá.

opusdei.org/en/article/hal…

👀

Federalist Society boss overheard telling private gathering that Chief Justice John Roberts was a solid pick for the Supreme Court because “he attends an Opus Dei evening of reflection once a month”

via @Streamdotorgstream.org/as-a-catholic-… When the Federalist Society advocated for Roberts to be nominated to the Supreme Court in 2005, it was the first time it had campaigned publicly for a particular candidate

nymag.com/intelligencer/…

Nice to see Kevin Roberts, president of the Heritage Foundation, taking time out of his busy Project 2025 schedule to spend some time with leaders of the European far-right in Madrid at the weekend

politico.eu/article/lookin… I wonder if he got to visit the Opus Dei national headquarters in Madrid while he was there 🤔

theguardian.com/us-news/articl…

When a victim of sexual abuse approached Opus Dei to report one of its cardinals in 2018, the organisation refused to even speak with him

Soon after, he started to receive threats — and told that, if he went public, he'd be sued and his identity leaked to the press

A THREAD 🧵 This extraordinary story has come to light thanks to the excellent reporting of Iñigo Domínguez at @el_pais

After the victim was ignored by Opus Dei, he wrote to the Pope, who removed the cardinal from duties

elpais.com/sociedad/2025-…

"Gore did his homework ... OPUS has certainly become required reading on the subject of Opus Dei"

Another great review of my new book OPUS, this time from the good people at @americamag

A THREAD 🧵

americamagazine.org/arts-culture/2… "The first thing to note about Opus is the tremendous amount of research that went into the project. This involved serious attention to many published works, interviews with present and former members of Opus Dei (including significant leadership figures), and archival research."

Most organisations would respond to serious allegations of abuse by immediately launching an independent investigation.

Not Opus Dei.

Instead, it’s launched a 106-page diatribe seeking to defend the indefensible.

A THREAD 🧵

catholicnewsagency.com/news/261555/op… The diatribe comes in response to my book OPUS, which reveals a litany of complaints including:

- grooming children
- spiritual/psychological abuse
- human trafficking
- labor violations
- surreptitious recruitment
- hidden finances
- political ties
simonandschuster.com/books/Opus/Gar…

Most organisations would respond to serious allegations of abuse with a clear response to immediately launch an investigation.

Not Opus Dei.

Instead, it’s launched a 106-page diatribe seeking to defend the indefensible – through contorted logic and disinformation.

A THREAD 🧵
catholicnewsagency.com/news/261555/op… The diatribe comes in response to my book OPUS, which was published by Simon & Schuster a few months ago.

It reveals a litany of new complaints against the organisation: of crimes and institutional failings, its surreptitious recruitment methods, the grooming of children, of spiritual and psychological abuse, vast cover-ups, as well as its hidden financial and political ties.
simonandschuster.com/books/Opus/Gar…

For the first time, one of the hundreds of victims of Opus Dei’s cruel system of grooming and coercing impoverished young girls into a life of servitude tells her own story.

Anne Marie Allen’s new book SERVE comes out in May.

A THREAD 🧵

linktr.ee/annemarieallen She was 15 when she was accepted onto a cookery school that promised qualifications and a dream future.

Seeking a better life, she moved to the west of Ireland.

Her happiness was short-lived as it became clear she had been tricked into a life of servitude in Opus Dei.

"A genuine exposé, a fluid, authoritative account...Gore has done a great service in putting all this material in the public domain in such a digestible format: no wonder Opus Dei is so unhappy with him.

@TheTLS and @PeterKGeoghegan review my new book

the-tls.co.uk/religion/relig… "It seeks to lift the veil on an organization whose secrecy – and outward image of piety and impecuniousness – masks, according to Gore, a litany of exploitative practices, opaque money and clandestine political influence operations that has, so far, culminated in the Trumpist takeover of the US Supreme Court."

Vatican to study how to address "spiritual abuse" in church law

....could this be a precursor to a full-scale intervention in Opus Dei - and bringing its leaders to justice?

From @Cindy_Wooden and @NCRonline

ncronline.org/node/288111 Back in May, the dicastry said:

"The use of purported supernatural experiences or recognized mystical elements as a means of or a pretext for exerting control over people or carrying out abuses is to be considered of particular moral gravity"

I’m sorry, but this is just WEIRD….

The Washington Post’s executive editor takes time out of his busy schedule to basically say that my book doesn’t include enough positive stuff about Opus Dei

What the actual f**k?

A THREAD 🧵

ncronline.org/culture/book-r… Before we even get into it, WHY – as the guy charged with restoring confidence in the Post – would you undermine your paper’s own coverage?

It called the book “a sober, fact-based indictment....a well-told, gripping story....a damning account of a sprawling organization” only last month

washingtonpost.com/books/2024/10/…

Understanding the bombshell Opus Dei human trafficking indictment

🧵 A THREAD based on this excellent interview with @PaulaBistagnino discussing the groundbreaking case against Opus Dei in Argentina

buenosairesherald.com/society/crime/… For decades, Opus Dei has recruited poor girls in rural Argentina and neighbouring countries on the promise of education and a better life.

Instead, they ended up working for years with no pay and found themselves unable to retire - even when they got sick.

"Catholics need to realise that Opus Dei is not what it seems"

Great piece about my new book OPUS from the @Independent_ie and @SarahRMacDonald

independent.ie/entertainment/… "There has long been an awareness within Opus Dei that there are serious problems in the organisation ... there has been resistance among the leadership to change, even when faced with incontrovertible evidence of abuse and manipulation"

Opus — understanding the web of influence at the heart of the Catholic Church

Gareth Gore’s investigation into Opus Dei reveals a powerful and shadowy organisation whose reach extends into politics, religion and finance

via @ftft.com/content/a62202… Gore’s vividly told and excellently researched book Opus is part of a more recent journalistic reconsideration of the accountability of a group that began as the dream of a young Spanish priest...

Pope Francis makes big move against Opus Dei, taking control of a vast mountain complex in northern Spain

The site, which was built on the orders of its founder, is an important pilgrimage site for its 90,000 members

A THREAD🧵

catholicnewsagency.com/news/259779/co… Opus Dei levelled a mountain in order to build the complex in the 1960s

It includes an immense basilica, four smaller chapels, two conference halls, a research center, a museum, soaring bell tower and large courtyard

Agents from the Policía Federal Argentina – basically the country’s FBI – seen outside the Opus Dei HQ in Buenos Aires.

Reports emerging that they paid similar visits to various other Opus Dei premises across the Argentine capital over the weekend.

opuslibros.org/nuevaweb/modul… The visits are understood to be connected with an investigation into Opus Dei’s involvement in trafficking teenage girls and young women.

Federal prosecutors made a public statement last week, accusing four Opus Dei priests of being involved.

fiscales.gob.ar/trata/pidieron…

Manipulation, Greed and Power: The Untold Story of Opus Dei

@gareth_gore accuses the organization of holding a Spanish bank hostage and of exploiting its members.

Its future depends on Trump… and on how far Pope Francis is willing to go

english.elpais.com/international/… By following the money trail, Gore discovered the group's hidden secrets, which inspired the full title of his book…

Opus: The Cult of Dark Money, Human Trafficking, and Right-Wing Conspiracy inside the Catholic Church

…the darker side of a powerful religious organization

simonandschuster.com/books/Opus/Gar…