Hi all -

Recent Opus Dei cult news stories below.

Cheers -
Matt

- Picture of a Cilice - Picture of a cilice, an Opus Dei torture device, digging into the skin of a person's leg.
[www.conspiracyplanet.com]

- # The Current, Part 3: Opus Dei - Catholic Church watchers, members, and critics alike are eagerly anticipating the publication of "Opus Dei: An Objective Look Behind the Myths and Reality of the Most Controversial Force in the Catholic Church". From the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Radio One. Requires RealPlayer. (November 4, 2005)
[www.cbc.ca]

- # Club Class - Simon Cox gains access to the hidden world of Opus Dei, one of the most mysterious and controversial clubs in the world, to separate the fact from the fiction. To their critics, they are a secretive elite cult who brainwash their members, control the Vatican and have tentacles reaching into governments all over the world. From BBC Radio 4. Requires RealPlayer. (October 27, 2005)
[www.bbc.co.uk]

- # $A160,103 payoff for Opus Dei row Irish don - An academic investigated for using her lectures to promote Opus Dei beliefs. UCD had ordered an inquiry into allegations that she told students it was compulsory to attend a talk given by an Opus Dei member last year. From Catholic News, Australia. (October 26, 2005)
[www.cathnews.com]

- # Intelligence Whispers - Knowledgeable sources are reporting that the case of accused White House spy Leandro Aragoncilla, a former Marine aide on the staff of the Vice President and later a an FBI employee, involves a Roman Catholic Opus Dei espionage and political assassination team operating in the United States. (October 14, 2005)
[www.waynemadsenreport.com]

- # Opus Dei must shed light on its dark image - Opus Dei, the conservative Roman Catholic group which gained international notoriety in The Da Vinci Code, is too secretive for its own good. From The New Zealand Herald. (October 5, 2005)
[www.nzherald.co.nz]

- # American Opus Dei Bishops Outed - Something that hasn't been widely reported are the number and identity of Opus Dei bishops in the United States. From vaticanisti. (September 30, 2005)
[vaticanisti.blogspot.com]

- # Decoding secret world of Opus Dei - As part of the Who Runs Your World? series, the BBC's Max Seitz travels to Spain to investigate Opus Dei a sect focused on wealth and power. (September 16, 2005)
[news.bbc.co.uk]

A cilice is not a "torture device," and it isn't "digging into" the person's skin. It's over magnified, for one, and it looks like it is actually on the person's arm.

[b:b5cbf61ca9]Moderator note:

"wquercus" appears to be what is often called an "Internet Troll." His only purpose posting here was apparently to subvert the message board.

He posted information elsewhere on the board about the Mankind Project, which he admitted attending. Subsequently, more than a year later "wquercus" returned to delete all his posts regarding the Mankind Project. However, portions of his statements remain as quoted/noted by other members posting here.

Apparently, "wquercus" came to realize that his statements provided proof concerning what goes on inside the Mankind Project and he therefore decided that he didn't want that information to remain here publicly visible.

Subsequently "wquercus" was banned from the board.[/b:b5cbf61ca9]

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wquercus
A cilice is not a "torture device," and it isn't "digging into" the person's skin.

Any device that is designed to solely inflict pain and injury is a torture device. The cilice diggs into a person skin in order to inflict pain and injury. It serves no other useful purpose.

Torture is defined as: something that causes agony or pain
[www.m-w.com]

It causes discomfort. It has a long established history in Christian spirituality. It's very mild compared to the ascetic practices in other religions. And the version that Opus Dei uses is one of the wimpiest versions available, as John Allen demonstrates. He wore one for the designated time, found it uncomfortable, but found his running practice much more torturous.

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wquercus
It causes discomfort.

It causes discomfort via the infliction of pain; hence, it is a torture device.

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It has a long established history in Christian spirituality.

Modern peer-reviewed psychology views the self-infliction of pain and destruction one's body as psychologically unhealthy, since it shows disrespect for one's physical health. Because it was done in the past does not necessarily make it healthy or moral.

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It's very mild compared to the ascetic practices in other religions. And the version that Opus Dei uses is one of the wimpiest versions available, as John Allen demonstrates. He wore one for the designated time, found it uncomfortable, but found his running practice much more torturous.

Healthy mainstream religions do not practice self-inflicted torture.

To the reader: Opus Dei cult members will often compare their torture practices to physical exercise. The key difference is that physical exercise, like running or weight lifting, is designed to enhance the strength and health of the body. These practices cultivate a healthy respect for the health and wellness of the body. Self-inflicted torture encourages a disrespect for the physical body and actually hurts the body with no physical benefits whatsoever.

It is not destruction of one's body. It is a tool to discipline of the body. Catholicism is a healthy religion. This is a long established part of Catholicism, which has tremendous respect for the body, because of its belief in the Incarnation of Christ.

You disagree. This is your opinion.

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wquercus
It is not destruction of one's body. It is a tool to discipline of the body. Catholicism is a healthy religion. This is a long established part of Catholicism, which has tremendous respect for the body, because of its belief in the Incarnation of Christ.

Inflicting pain and damage to one's body for no reason is generally known as destruction and self-mutilation. It is also destroying one's respect for one's own physical being. Mainstream Catholicism is healthy; extremist cultic wings of the Catholic Church like Opus Dei are not. Because people wore spiked torture devices and whipped themselves bloody in the past does not make it a psychologically healthy thing to do. Mainstream Catholicism, like most mainstream religions, teaches respect of the body. Cultic groups like Opus Dei do not because they seek to break down a person's respect for themselves, their own intellect and their own ability to make decisions for themselves based on externally available information.

Opus Dei is mainstream Catholicism. If you were to go to an Opus Dei evening of reflection, or a retreat, you'd realize this.

This is incorrect. The Opus Dei cult has always been part of the extremist wing of Catholicism. Opus Dei views itself as elitest and a better class of Catholic than normal Catholics; hence, by its own definition, it is outside the mainstream.

Opus Dei has members of all walks of life, of every nation. St. Josemaria's views on the apostolate of the laity were considered liberal in the 40s-50s, and were the basis for the Second Vatican Council's decree on the apostolate of the laity. Quite mainstream.