Nuns vs. the Vatican review: TIFF 2025
‘Nuns vs. the Vatican’ chronicles activists’ ongoing fight for recognition from the church for nuns abused by clergy.
The Vatican’s demand for obedience and silence makes it expectedly difficult to find victims willing to speak on camera. However, a small group of former nuns publicly petition for action against Jesuit Father Marko Rupnik. The prominent Slovenian priest is revered for his artistic talents, which are featured in churches around the world. But behind closed doors, he manipulated young nuns into fulfilling his sexual desires. It took Gloria, a former nun, 30 years to break her silence. The documentary speaks to her and many others fighting to hold the church accountable.
The victimization of nuns has been startlingly ignored. American activist Barbara Dorris observes in an interview that the Church consistently frames abuse as a homosexual issue, excluding women victims from the conversation. Clergy accused of abuse are sent to a treatment centre at which rehabilitation is not a requirement. But the optics are better than doing nothing. The Vatican has its own court system, so most allegations are never heard beyond its walls. Yet, anecdotally, there are many cases of sexual abuse involving nuns. Statistically, a study of 14,000 nuns found a staggering 1 in 3 of them experienced some form of abuse.
Read the full review of Nuns vs. the Vatican at thatshelf.com
