Disagreement between Spanish Diocese and Opus Dei over Pilgrimage Site, with the New American Pope as Arbiter

It's all about the money, what a surprise!

The Argentine president has once again visited Spain. It remains remarkable how the former Spanish colonies maintain ties with their old colonizer. The Argentine president likely does so to connect with the numerous Argentine migrants in Spain, with an eye on the upcoming elections in 2027. Many of these Argentines work in Spain as dentists, I know from experience, others in the hair and beard trimming sector, and the rest can be found in the hospitality industry, with the inevitable Argentine steak restaurants. “Milei loves the international stage because it’s the only way to get his domestic achievements in the spotlight; otherwise, they barely make the news here,” says my barber’s wife to a customer, who, like her, is from Argentina, judging by his accent. “Since December 2023, when Milei became president, hyperinflation has dropped from 211% to 2.4%,” the man elaborates when he notices I’ve paused to listen closely to their conversation. “Even more: there’s now a budget surplus for 2025, as he announced in a speech in Madrid yesterday.” “According to what I read in the press here, poverty has increased,” I interject. “That’s nothing compared to the hidden poverty that hyperinflation used to bring,” he counters. Milei has drastically cut government spending, which inevitably affected the jobs of civil servants who thought themselves untouchable. The public sector unions now portray this class of profiteers, which grew under Peronism, as a bunch of victims, while in reality, thanks to curbing inflation, everyone has become richer. “These are facts you won’t read in the newspapers here, but they’re accurate according to my family in Buenos Aires, who now get much more value for their pesos.”Our conversation is interrupted by the loud chiming of the village church, which, bizarrely, plays the Sinterklaas classic “See, There Comes the Steamboat” over the village every hour on the hour. “Ha, the church is making itself heard!” my barber exclaims. “Did you read about the dispute between Opus Dei and the diocese of Huesca?” he asks, knowing I’m always on the lookout for news. I must admit that this news slipped past me, busy as I am deciphering the corruption scandals involving the PSOE, which have now landed the party’s number three, Santos Cerdán, in pretrial detention. “Opus Dei is still a significant—albeit often invisible—force in Spain,” I know from friends. According to them, Opus Dei has long controlled many of Spain’s elite colleges, from which many right-wing politicians have been recruited, and whose alumni still form a good-old-boys network of entrepreneurs and captains of industry, often after further studies at the University of Pamplona (Navarra), which is entirely run by Opus Dei members.My barber interrupts my musings and continues his story: “There’s been ongoing tension between the diocese of Huesca, which includes the popular Marian pilgrimage site Torreciudad in the Pyrenees, and Opus Dei, which has appropriated the site and all the revenue it generates over the years.

To put an end to the squabbling, the bishop of Huesca has made a surprising proposal to drop his claim to the site and make Torreciudad an ‘international sanctuary’ directly under the pope’s authority.” My barber grins. “That dumps a pretty hot potato on the plate of the new Pope Leo,” I reply, still a bit amazed at how quickly a conversation about an Argentine president veers off into Opus Dei—and at the erudition of the barber and his customer.Once back home, I look up the background of the issue and find a press release from the bishop of Huesca, who added an ironic note : “We hope that the aspirations of the Opus Dei Prelature to promote the Route of Saint Josemaría and the International Marian Route may come to fruition,” a clear jab from the monsignor at Opus Dei’s intention to create a pilgrimage route over the Pyrenees to Torreciudad to rival the immensely popular Camino de Santiago.Opus Dei, in turn, plays the ball back into the pope’s court, stating in a communiqué: “On October 9, 2024, the Holy See appointed Monsignor Alejandro Arellano as Authorized Papal Commissioner to study this matter. Over the past months, we have made ourselves fully available to assist with all requests and await your resolution.”The trim of my beard ended up costing me nine euros, as inflation here is quite manageable. I handed over a ten-euro note and put the one-euro change in the tip jar. For ten euros, I got both a trimmed beard and not one but two topics for a column, making me realize that my barber is a cheaper source of information than my subscription to Spanish newspapers.