Pope Francis Expels Bishop, 9 Others from Peruvian Religious Movement

The expulsion by Pope Francis targets leaders of the Sodalitium Christianae Vitae (Sodalitium of Christian Life), a conservative Catholic movement that has faced allegations of abuse and misconduct for over a decade.

Vatican City — Pope Francis has taken the unprecedented step of expelling a bishop and nine other members of a controversial Catholic organization in Peru following a Vatican investigation that uncovered “sadistic” abuses within the group.

The Peruvian Bishops Conference announced the decision on Wednesday, releasing a statement from the Vatican embassy on its website.

The expulsion by Pope Francis targets leaders of the Sodalitium Christianae Vitae (Sodalitium of Christian Life), a conservative Catholic movement that has faced allegations of abuse and misconduct for over a decade.

The announcement comes years after the Vatican expelled the group’s founder, Luis Figari, who was found guilty of sexually abusing recruits.

The recent investigation revealed even more abuses of power, authority, and spirituality within the group, including physical violence, spiritual manipulation, financial misconduct, and sect-like control.

The investigation detailed instances of sadism and violence, sect-like manipulation, and exploitation of members. It also referenced abuses related to journalism, where a journalist linked to the movement reportedly attacked critics on social media.

Founded in 1971 by Figari, Sodalitium Christianae Vitae aimed to create a conservative lay community in opposition to the leftist liberation theology that was gaining traction in Latin America. At its height, the group boasted about 20,000 members across South America and the United States and wielded significant influence in Peru.

Allegations against Figari first surfaced in 2011, but many of the accusations dated back to 2000. It wasn’t until 2015, when victims Pedro Salinas and journalist Paola Ugaz published the book Half Monks, Half Soldiers, exposing the movement’s practices, that the Vatican began taking concrete action.

A 2017 independent investigation commissioned by Sodalitium labeled Figari as “narcissistic, paranoid, demeaning, vulgar, vindictive, manipulative, racist, sexist, elitist, and obsessed with sexual issues and the sexual orientation” of its members.

The report described how Figari had sodomized recruits, forced them into humiliating acts, and took pleasure in their pain and fear.

Despite the damning findings, the Vatican initially refrained from expelling Figari, instead isolating him from the community in Rome. The delay was attributed to complications in canon law, which lacked provisions for penalizing founders of religious movements who were not ordained clergy.

The latest investigation, however, uncovered further evidence that the abuses extended beyond Figari, involving hacking, harassment of victims, and covering up crimes.

Among those expelled was Archbishop Jose Antonio Eguren, the highest-ranking member of the group. Eguren had resigned as Bishop of Piura earlier this year and faced legal battles for suing journalists Salinas and Ugaz over their exposé.