What’s so secret about Opus Dei?

What’s so secret about Opus Dei?

Seen as one of the most controversial organisations within the Church, Siobhán Tanner looks at Opus Dei in Ireland.

Last month, Senator David Norris threatened to table a motion in the Seanad demanding that all civil servants declare their membership of secret societies ”such as Opus Dei and the Knights of St Columbanus”. ”If department officials are members of an organisation that is influencing their ideology, then the public have a right to know,” he told this paper. So widespread is the negative perception of Opus Dei that nobody objected to the senator’s assertion of secret handshakes, dodgy deals and inappropriate influence. There was no comment from the 700 members (which includes 19 priests) of the organisation in Ireland. Privately, however, they were outraged at the claim, but hardly surprised. An announcement by the Archbishop of Dublin last year that Opus Dei was to take over its first parish in the wealthy Dublin suburb of Mount Merrion provided further evidence of this negative perception in the reported ”angry reactions” of parishioners. And most famously, the portrayal of Opus Dei as a puppeteer of the Vatican, in the novel the Da Vinci Code has compounded the conspiracy theory. Criticism has centred around allegations of secrecy, undue influence in power circles, the practice of mortification of the flesh by celibate members and aggressive recruitment. What is Opus Dei? Opus Dei is a personal prelature, meaning members come under the governance of a particular bishop or prelate rather than a geographical diocese, affording the organisation’s 1,900 secular priests a greater freedom of movement than their diocesan or congregational counterparts. Translated from Latin, the organisation means ‘Work of God’ and teaches the belief that ordinary life is a path to sanctity. There are 85,000 members worldwide – the majority of whom are women – across 60 countries. About 70%, known as supernumeraries, are married and have secular careers and 30% (numeraries) are celibates who live in Opus Dei centres. In the 700-strong Irish group, the same percentages are reflected. Aside from personal charity and social work, members are involved in running universities, university residences, schools, publishing houses, and technical and agricultural training centres. Opus Dei came to Ireland in 1947 in the form of Spanish engineer, José Ramón Madurga. His example was immediately taken up by some UCD students and by 1954, Opus Dei opened its first university residence in Dartry in Dublin. As evidence of the political regard for the organisation, the opening was attended by both, the Taoiseach at the time, John A Costello and, the leader of the Opposition Eamon de Valera. From 1958 to 1985, it opened student residences in Galway, Dublin and Limerick, and a study centre in Donnybrook. It also has youth clubs across the capital and runs the Lismullin Hospitality Services Centre for courses in catering and hotel management. Externally, there is no indication these centres are run by Opus Dei. According to Mike Garde, head of Dialogue Ireland, the absence of such signage is enough to raise questions about transparency. ”They need to come out of the closet and declare what their mission is,” he said. ”Especially in this time of scandal, the more transparent Opus Dei is, the better it is for the Church.” Mr Garde said he had received complaints from one parent of aggressive recruitment several years ago but nothing in more recent years. Claims of secrecy also stem from the fact that the institution does not require members to disclose membership. But Micheal Kirk, director of the Ely Centre, a university residence adjacent to UCD, denies any lack of transparency: ”You have to think outside the institutional box to really understand Opus Dei. It’s a spirit more than an organisation.” Opus Dei, he says is a ”private vocation”. ”This is a very personal thing, if I decide that this is what God wants me to do then I’m not keen publicising that, I’m not keen on telling people what is happening in my soul. The demand to know what a person’s religious views are is an intrusion of a person’s religious freedom.” On the other controversial practice of mortification, Kirk says penance and sacrifice is part of the Christian tradition such as fasting during Lent or climbing Croagh Patrick barefoot. So are they really secret? Journalist with the National Catholic Reporter, John Allen has perhaps provided the most balanced answer to this question in his book on the group. Allen who logged 300 hours of interview time with members across eight countries describes Opus Dei as, ”a relatively small group, only modestly influential, with a profile similar to many other lay associations or even mid-sized dioceses.” He goes on to explain the disproportionate influence of the organisation of its size. ”Opus Dei members are probably more likely than Catholics in general to be active in politics, because of their emphasis on the ‘unity of life’. ”Because sanctification of the secular world is their prime directive, Opus Dei members feel an unusually powerful call to roll up their sleeves and get involved in secular affairs. Hence, where Opus Dei members are active politically, they’re likely to be unusually committed, and therefore sometimes unusually influential.”

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