The 43 former auxiliary numeraries of Opus Dei who are pursuing a criminal case in Argentina against former leaders of the prelature have requested an audience with Pope Leo XIV during his upcoming visit to the country, scheduled between November 8 and 11. The petition was formally submitted to the Vatican on September 15, and according to their lawyer, Sebastián Sal, it has not yet received a response.
In statements to the Argentine media outlet La Redacción, Sal explained that the request remains unanswered, “neither positive nor negative,” and noted that he does not rule out the possibility that the Holy See’s silence may ultimately be the only reply.
The petition has gained particular relevance after the Holy See Press Office announced that the Pontiff will hold meetings with survivors of abuse committed by members of the Church during his trip to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru, without specifying in which countries these meetings will take place or who will participate.
The lawyer believes that an audience with the Pope would have a reparative effect for the complainants. Nevertheless, he pointed out that Pope Leo XIV could also send them a signal of recognition and closeness even if he ultimately does not receive them.
For her part, journalist Paula Bistagnino, author of the book Te serviré, dedicated to the testimonies of these women, expressed her confidence that the meeting could take place. In her view, the Pontiff has time to make a decision “until the very last minute” before leaving Argentina.
A complaint for alleged labor exploitation and human trafficking
The complainants maintain that they were incorporated into Opus Dei when they were young, in some cases with the promise of access to higher education, and that they subsequently worked for years in domestic and service tasks without receiving remuneration or having defined working hours.
According to their testimonies, they lived under a regime of strong control over their daily lives, with restrictions on contact with their families and without economic autonomy.
Bistagnino has pointed out that the women were required to sign testamentary documents to cede their future assets and that, for much of their time in the institution, they did not have their own bank accounts. Several of them also lack registered contributions in the Argentine social security system.
Among the practices described by the former members are also corporal penances, such as the use of the cilice and the discipline.
These statements form part of the complaints and testimonies gathered during the investigation. Opus Dei rejects the accusations and maintains that the version circulated about the situation of the auxiliary numeraries distorts the facts.
The women filed a complaint with the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith in September 2021. According to their representatives, they received no response. The criminal case in Argentina was opened in 2023.
Five Opus Dei leaders identified by the Prosecutor’s Office, but none have been summoned
The judicial investigation continues without the investigative statements requested by the Public Prosecutor’s Office having taken place.
In October 2024, federal prosecutor Eduardo Taiano and the Prosecutor’s Office for Human Trafficking and Exploitation (PROTEX) requested that four priests who had held positions of responsibility in Opus Dei in Argentina be summoned to testify.
In July 2025, the request was extended to the auxiliary vicar of the prelature, Mariano Fazio, as reported when covering the new judicial proceedings against Opus Dei leaders.
The Prosecutor’s Office counts 44 alleged victims, while 43 former auxiliary numeraries have requested a meeting with the Pope.
According to Sebastián Sal, the request for an investigative hearing was recently reiterated, but federal judge Daniel Rafecas has not yet summoned any of the five individuals identified.
The absence of summons does not equate to a ruling on the guilt or innocence of those under investigation. The accusations must be examined in the corresponding judicial proceedings, with due process guarantees and the right of defense for the individuals involved.
The Permanent Assembly for Human Rights also submitted an amicus curiae brief referring to possible practices of physical and psychological torture with a gender component.
Bistagnino has described this investigation as “the most important one in the world against Opus Dei” and has warned of the importance of the statute of limitations. According to her account, the only case that could still be prosecuted criminally would expire in September 2027.
The Pope is already aware of the complaints, according to the women’s lawyer
The request for an audience is not the first attempt to bring the complaints to the Vatican.
In October 2025, Pope Leo XIV received representatives of the organization Ending Clergy Abuse, which later organized an international meeting in Buenos Aires in which some of the former auxiliary numeraries participated.
During that meeting, held in December, the women publicly presented their testimonies about the living and working conditions they claim to have suffered within Opus Dei.
In March 2026, the Pontiff also received British journalist Gareth Gore, author of the book Opus, in a private audience, and Gore provided him with documentation related to the Argentine Prosecutor’s Office investigation.
According to Sebastián Sal, during that meeting Pope Leo XIV reportedly stated that he was aware of the matter and intended to take action. This is a version conveyed by the lawyer, without any public confirmation from the Holy See regarding the content of that conversation.
The lawyer also questioned the fact that the Pope has received the prelate of Opus Dei, Fernando Ocáriz, and auxiliary vicar Mariano Fazio, while the women continue to wait for an audience.
“It is striking that the Pope receives the perpetrators and does not receive the victims,” Sal declared. The statement reflects the position of the complainants’ legal representation and does not imply any criminal liability established by a court.
The petition coincides with the review of Opus Dei’s statutes
The case unfolds as the process of adapting the prelature’s statutes to the provisions approved during the pontificate of Francis continues.
The motu proprio Ad charisma tuendum, promulgated in July 2022, modified the institutional framework of Opus Dei and transferred its dependence from the Dicastery for Bishops to the Dicastery for the Clergy.
Since then, the prelature has been working on a statutory revision that must receive the approval of the Holy See.
Although this procedure is distinct from the Argentine criminal case, both matters coincide in a period of particular attention to the organization’s internal structure and the functioning of the prelature.
For the moment, no audience between Pope Leo XIV and the former auxiliary numeraries has been announced. The decision will depend on the Holy See and the schedule of the apostolic journey.
The complainants maintain their request to be heard personally by the Pontiff, while the judicial investigation remains pending the statements requested by the Prosecutor’s Office.