Pope Francis appoints Pontifical Commissioner for the conflict over Torreciudad

Pope Francis has appointed the dean of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota, Mons. Alejandro Arellano Cedillo, Pontifical Commissioner to address the conflict between Opus Dei and the Bishopric of Barbastro-Monzón over the “Torreciudad complex” in Spain.

This was announced by the Press Room of the Holy See this Wednesday, October 9, after the Bishop of Barbastro-Monzón, Mons. Ángel Pérez Pueyo announced two weeks ago that he had escalated the dispute over the place to mid-September. the Vatican authority.

Upon hearing the news, Opus Dei issued a brief statement In it he assures that “the authorities of the Prelature will be at the complete disposal of Bishop Arellano, collaborating in whatever is necessary, with filial adherence to the Holy Father.”

Sources of the Bishopric of Barbastro-Monzón have explained to ACI Press that, “in principle” any assessment of the appointment of Mons. Arellano will not be issued from the diocese.

Who is Bishop Alejandro Arellano?

Bishop Alejandro Arellano Cedillo is originally from the town of Olías del Rey, in the Archdiocese of Toledo (Spain). Born in 1962, he studied at the San Ildefonso Theological Institute in Toledo and was ordained a priest in 1987.

Member of the Concernity of Operators of the Kingdom of Christ, Mons. Arellano is a Doctor of Canon Law from the Pontifical Gregorian University of Rome, a degree in ecclesiastical studies from the Faculty of Theology of Burgos and auditor of the Congregation for the causes of the saints.

On March 30, 2021, Mons. Arellano was appointed dean of the Apostolic Court of Romana Rota, where he served as a consultant since 2007. He is the first Span the 14th century and whose functions are defined in the Code of Canon Law (canons 1443 and 1444).

The Pontifical Commissioner to resolve the conflict over Torreciudad has exercised as an auditor of the Rota of the Apostolic Nunciature in Spain, a professor at the University of San Pablo CEU and at the San Dámaso Ecclesiastical University, both in Madrid, as well as the Pontifical Gregorian University, in Rome. In addition, he teaches Jurisprudence classes at the Rotal Study of the Apostolic Tribunal of the Roman Rota.

Last March, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State for the Holy See, presided the personal title of archbishop.

What does the dispute over Torreciudad consist of?

The one known as the Sanctuary of Torreciudad was erected in 1975 in accordance with the canonical legislation of its time as a “semi-public oratory” and with the impetus of the Prelature of Opus Dei, whose founder, Saint Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer, was closely linked to the Marian devotion of the place.

Legally, the Diocese of Barbastro-Monzón agreed in 1962 an emphasis (with perpetuity vocation) on the original hermitage and attached units, in addition to the image of Our Lady of Los Angeles, venerated since the eleventh century. The pact was signed with a company in the name of a full member of Opus Dei.

In December 2018, the Canonical Foundation “Sanctuary Our Lady of Los Angeles de Torreciudad” as a diocesan sanctuary.

Four years later, after numerous conversations between the parties, the Bishopric of Barbastro-Monzón communicates to the Prelature that it denounces the original contract “for full nullity”, giving six months for the image of the Virgin to be returned to the hermitage. original and the transfer of “the Hermitage, Hostel and annexed premises” is reversed.

Tensions between both institutions grew from that moment on. Proof of this was the appointment for the first time in July 2023 of a new rector of Torreciudad outside of Opus Dei. Furthermore, the Bishopric threatened to take the matter to civil courts.

In September 2023, the Bishop of Barbastro-Monzón announced his willingness to raise the controversy to higher levels: “We are open to the competent ecclesiastical authority resolving the situation if they are really not satisfied with the arguments presented,” he expressed in a letter.

Bishop Pérez put into practice the intention declared a year ago and now the response of the Holy See has been produced, with the appointment of Bishop Arellano.

In 2025, the Torreciudad complex will celebrate 50 years since its inauguration. In that time, it has become an important center of Marian devotion and pilgrimage, especially for families.