A woman who went undercover inside Opus Dei in the UK has revealed the “haunting” moments that set off alarm bells.
Jordana Seal, a journalist at the Daily Mail, spent five months investigating the ultra-conservative Catholic group, which has been referred to as a “cult” by former members.
“In the UK they operate in the shadows, owning multiple properties in Glasgow, Manchester, Oxford and London, alongside women-only university halls of residence in the heart of London and Manchester,” Jordana said of the organization.
Highlights
- Journalist Jordana Seal spent five months undercover in Opus Dei, a personal prelature of the Catholic Church.
- Members were seen performing "corporal mortification," including whipping and wearing spiked chains.
- Female members were forced to serve male students, cooking and cleaning for them while living in controlled dormitories.
A journalist’s undercover work inside Opus Dei exposed chilling rituals and a tightly controlled world
Image credits: DW
Trigger Warning: This article contains graphic details that may be distressing to some.
After earning the trust of its members, she witnessed self-punishment rituals and scenes of women serving men that were reminiscent of Margaret Atwood's dystopian novel The Handmaid's Tale.
Jordana knocked on the door of London’s Lakefield Hospitality Training College, an alleged cookery center, and posed as a reserved university graduate.
The woman who opened the door allegedly informed her that they were no longer offering cooking lessons and invited her to return so they could meet for coffee.
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“We ended up having weekly sessions where she would guide me spiritually,” Jordana recounted in a video posted on Wednesday (April 22). “It started off in a coffee shop, and eventually we moved to having them inside the center.”
Jordana explained that there was a chapel close to where the women lived, and her spiritual guide would “slam” her knees against the ground every time she entered to “give herself to God.”
"That was the first physical thing she had me do as well,” the reporter recalled. “When you’re slamming your knees onto the ground every time you enter or exit a building, it starts to hurt and feel a bit odd.”
During her five-month investigation, Jordana Seal gained the trust of members who operate in London
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The woman eventually revealed that she was a numerary, a celibate Opus Dei member, and that she had joined the religious group as a teenager while living in student accommodation in London.
Erin, as she’s referred to in the investigation, reportedly gave up a successful career in lab research to join Opus Dei.
As Jordana described, Erin wore an engagement ring to symbolize her “spiritual calling'” and justified self-punishment acts known as “corporal mortification.”
Image credits: Lakefield Hospitality College
These include whipping oneself and wearing a spiked metal chain, known as a cilice, around the thigh, which was described as being “normal in the church.”
Erin attempted to justify corporal mortification by asking Jordana if she had ever cold-plunged.
“She said, ‘Well, when you plunge, you physically punish yourself for your physical health. So why wouldn’t you do that for your spiritual health?’”
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The women who ran the center, who were also numeraries, always encouraged female members to sit with different women to avoid developing individual bonds and “cliquey” behavior.
Their leisure time was allegedly controlled. The women could not have private male visitors, and they were only allowed to watch U-rated Disney films.
As Jordana soon learned, Erin and the other women at Opus Dei served a group of “about 40 boys.”
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“In the back of their halls of residence was a boys’ university accommodation,” the reporter explained. “These women would cook all their meals and do all their laundry for them.”
When she was given more access to the Opus Dei building, Jordana was led to a room where she found neatly packed boxes of men’s clothing.
She was also shown a “massive dining hall” where the men ate and was told that women were not allowed to interact with them.
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Erin reportedly told Jordana, “We lay out all their knives and forks, we bring in their food, and we leave a bell. And then we walk back in and lock ourselves into the smaller room. If they need anything, they’ll ring a bell.”
If the men rang the bell, other Opus Dei members, known as assistant numeraries, would serve them like waitresses.
"Women living inside the home are consumed by their duties to male students, working six days a week, with just one day off, while living in adjoining halls of residence called Netherhall House,” Jordana explained.
Image credits: Lakefield Hospitality College
Erin reportedly told the reporter that some women choose to also work outside the accommodation but have to pay Opus Dei residence fees. In contrast, she lived there for free and was paid “not very much, but enough.”
“It’s obvious that Opus Dei is preying on impressionable young girls from university campuses. Being an 18-year-old away from home for the first time puts you in a really vulnerable position, and these girls deserve more of a duty of care,” Jordana said.
“Someone needs to be checking in on them. And these centers need to be looked at because no woman should be paid barely any money or just enough to survive.”
Image credits: Lakefield Hospitality College
Opus Dei, which translates to “Work of God,” is a personal prelature of the Catholic Church that was founded in 1928 by a Spanish Catholic priest called Josemaría Escrivá.
The religious organization has since been established in more than 70 countries and it’s strongest in Spain, Italy, and Latin America. It has around 90,000 members, who are expected to commit to a life of intense work, prayer, and asceticism.
In 1982, Opus Dei received Vatican-approved status, with anyone under the age of 18 being formally banned from joining.
The investigation suggested young women, particularly students living away from home, may be especially vulnerable to the group
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However, dozens of women have accused the group of exploiting them as children and adolescents, forcing them to live a life of domestic servitude.
The women claimed they were lured by promises of an education and better life opportunities but were trapped in servitude. Opus Dei has categorically denied the accusations.