Opus Dei denies illegally holding Our Lady of the Angels at Torreciudad

The Prelature of Opus Dei has responded to accusations by the bishop of Barbastro-Monzón, in the Aragon region of northeastern Spain. It denies that the presence of the image of Our Lady of the Angels at the Torreciudad shrine can be described as theft, usurpation or illegal retention. The Opus Dei Information Office in Spain published a set of clarifications on September 3 in response to the bishop's statement of August 31. It says ownership of the carving has never been in dispute and belongs to the diocese.

The text comes after the publication of two handwritten letters from Pope Francis to the bishop of Barbastro, and it begins with the origin of the Vatican intervention. The prelature says Archbishop Alejandro Arellano was appointed pontifical commissary with full powers for Torreciudad at the bishop's own request. The diocese acknowledged this in its statement of October 9, 2024, in which it thanked the Holy See for responding to "its request", expressed its "absolute confidence in the decisions of the Holy See" and placed itself at the commissary's disposal. The prelature says it made clear at the time that it was fully willing to cooperate, and it maintains its commitment to abide by whatever the Holy See decides.

The text also sets out what the dispute is actually about. Who owns the image is not in question, it says. What is in question is the scope and validity of the rights of use, custody and location set out in the agreements signed by the two sides. The relevant legal documents, it adds, are published and available to anyone.

What the 1962 deed and the 1966 agreement say

The public deed of September 24, 1962, registered in the Property Registry of Benabarre, granted in perpetuity the dominio útil, the beneficial use, of the old hermitage and of the image, but not their ownership, which remained with the diocese. In return came obligations: restoring and preserving the site, promoting worship there and guaranteeing access for pilgrims.

The agreement signed on September 8, 1966, established that the Patronato would build and finance the new shrine, on the express condition that the image receive worship and veneration in it. It also provided that the old hermitage and the new church form "a single, properly enclosed precinct". Bishop Jaime Flores accepted that provision. He was the same bishop who had signed the 1962 agreement.

From this the prelature concludes that the carving never left Torreciudad and was never taken clandestinely. It was placed, with documented authorization from the diocese, in the church built a few meters from the hermitage, within the same devotional site. It was restored in 1964 and again around 1970, and since 1975 it has presided over the altarpiece of the new church, exposed for public veneration by the faithful.

The statement accepts that there may be different readings of the legal effects of those agreements and that it is for the competent authority to settle them. What it rejects is that a difference over legal interpretation should lead to offensive and unfounded accusations.

Ten million pilgrims and free access

The prelature says the aim of what has been done since the 1960s was to preserve the image, restore the old hermitage and make it possible for more people to venerate Our Lady of the Angels. Entry has been free since the new church opened in 1975. According to the shrine's figures, more than 10 million pilgrims have passed through Torreciudad, which now receives around 200,000 visitors a year, among them parish groups, families and pilgrims from many countries.

The text says the new church allows elderly people and people with disabilities to approach the image in far better conditions than the old hermitage did. It lists ramps, elevators, wide doors, adapted restrooms, wheelchair routes and specific resources for those with visual or hearing impairments. The original hermitage was not abandoned, it adds: it was restored, it is kept within the same enclosure and it remains open for worship and for visits.

Willing to accept the Holy See's decision

In its closing section, the prelature says it respects and has fostered the roots of this devotion in Barbastro-Monzón and in the Alto Aragón. That bond, in its view, is enriched by the devotion of faithful who come from elsewhere. It notes that since 2020 it has pushed for Torreciudad's legal situation to be updated, and that it went as far as proposing that the new church be recognized as a diocesan shrine.

The statement ends by repeating the prelature's willingness to talk, its respect for the bishop and its readiness to work with the pontifical commissary and to accept whatever the Holy See decides. It says it hopes Torreciudad will continue to be a place of encounter with God, of proclamation of the Gospel, of reconciliation and of unity.