Peruvian Catholic Church holds symbolic apology ceremony for land seizure from indigenous people

(Patria) - After years of accusations of land seizure by a now-dissolved Catholic group, the highest church authorities in the Andean country held a symbolic reparation ceremony on Saturday for the indigenous peoples whose land was seized, AP reported.

The Peru-based organization Sodalitium Christianae Vitae was dissolved in 2025 by the late Pope Francis, after years of reform attempts and a Vatican investigation that revealed sexual abuse by its founder, financial mismanagement by its leaders, and spiritual abuse by its leading members.

The ceremony in Peru was held before the indigenous Tallán people, in the northern community of Catacaos.

"We are here to ask for your forgiveness in the name of the Church," said Monsignor Jordi Bertomeu, the apostolic commissioner in charge of the dissolution process of Sodalitium, in front of a full church.

"We are late. We should have come twenty years ago, and we are truly sorry."

Sodalitium was founded in 1971 as one of several Catholic societies that emerged as a conservative reaction to the left-leaning liberation theology movement that swept Latin America in the 1960s. At its peak, the group had about 20,000 members across South America and the United States and was extremely influential in Peru.

In 2011, former members complained to the Archdiocese of Lima, Peru's capital, about abuses committed by its founder, Luis Figari. But neither the local church nor the Holy See took concrete action until one of the victims and a journalist wrote a book in 2015.

After reform attempts, Francis sent his two most trusted investigators, Bertomeu and Archbishop Charles Scicluna, to investigate the abuse allegations against Sodalitium.

Their report revealed "sadistic" abuses of power and cult-like spirituality, financial abuses in the management of church funds, and even cases of harassment of critics.

During Saturday's ceremony, Bertomeu recalled a message Francis sent to the community in 2024, telling them: "Fight for your land, I am with you."

Land disputes date back at least ten years, since companies linked to Sodalitium initiated legal proceedings to evict people from thousands of hectares in Catacaos after several property transfers that farmers do not recognize.

Dozens of farmers have been prosecuted for alleged "usurpation," and two community leaders were killed during conflicts arising from eviction efforts.

The religious ceremony was held months after the Peruvian Episcopal Conference announced a possible visit by Pope Leo XIV to the South American country at the end of the year.

"Forgive us, offer us your forgiveness, because we need it too," said Bertomeu, who described Catacaos as a community "frightened and broken."

Tania Pariona, secretary of the Peruvian National Human Rights Commission, called the ceremony a "historic gesture" in which the church "takes the lead over the state, which has failed to protect rural communities."