1 00:00:08,800 --> 00:00:11,280 Speaker 1: I was eight years old when I met the man 2 00:00:11,480 --> 00:00:13,440 Speaker 1: who would change my life forever. 3 00:00:15,280 --> 00:00:16,200 Speaker 2: It was nighttime. 4 00:00:17,880 --> 00:00:20,919 Speaker 1: I was with a group of about five kids, young 5 00:00:20,960 --> 00:00:24,439 Speaker 1: siblings and cousins, and we were all lined up waiting 6 00:00:24,480 --> 00:00:30,600 Speaker 1: for a turn to greet him. Everyone was excited, whispering, visiting. 7 00:00:32,159 --> 00:00:35,440 Speaker 1: When it was finally my turn, he placed his hand 8 00:00:35,479 --> 00:00:43,920 Speaker 1: on my head. It was heavy and strange. I didn't 9 00:00:43,920 --> 00:00:49,239 Speaker 1: know what to feel, honored maybe, or nervous. All I 10 00:00:49,320 --> 00:00:52,720 Speaker 1: knew was that my chest felt tight and my thoughts 11 00:00:52,720 --> 00:00:57,160 Speaker 1: were loud, like my body sensed something I didn't yet understand. 12 00:00:58,880 --> 00:01:02,920 Speaker 1: I looked up his figure towering over me, and for 13 00:01:02,960 --> 00:01:05,040 Speaker 1: a brief moment, he smiled. 14 00:01:07,720 --> 00:01:10,080 Speaker 2: Then, just like that, it was over. 15 00:01:11,240 --> 00:01:13,960 Speaker 1: Once all the kids had had their turn, they sent 16 00:01:14,080 --> 00:01:16,800 Speaker 1: us to bed, while the adults stayed in the living room. 17 00:01:19,240 --> 00:01:22,640 Speaker 1: That night, lying in bed, I felt anxious and excited. 18 00:01:23,959 --> 00:01:27,720 Speaker 1: I had finally met the man everyone talked about at 19 00:01:27,760 --> 00:01:32,640 Speaker 1: family dinners, among my parents and their friends. Everyone in 20 00:01:32,680 --> 00:01:36,640 Speaker 1: my life admired him. He was the example of everything 21 00:01:36,720 --> 00:01:45,320 Speaker 1: we should want to be. I remember hearing him speak 22 00:01:45,400 --> 00:01:49,080 Speaker 1: to my parents. He was telling them about into Geromo 23 00:01:49,240 --> 00:01:53,080 Speaker 1: and into Germueller, letting for a whole man and a 24 00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:58,600 Speaker 1: whole woman in meanfulfilling God's design, being fully human by 25 00:01:58,640 --> 00:02:03,960 Speaker 1: living through love, harmony in all parts of yourself. In 26 00:02:04,000 --> 00:02:07,560 Speaker 1: my community, the people who were most whole were the 27 00:02:07,560 --> 00:02:14,239 Speaker 1: ones who followed this man, served him, worshiped him. By 28 00:02:14,360 --> 00:02:17,680 Speaker 1: now you proudly figured it out. The man I met 29 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:22,200 Speaker 1: at my house was a priest, but he wasn't just 30 00:02:22,360 --> 00:02:28,880 Speaker 1: any priest. He was Marcil Marsiell de Goyado. And after 31 00:02:28,960 --> 00:02:32,400 Speaker 1: that night, my life was never the same. In fact, 32 00:02:32,960 --> 00:02:36,040 Speaker 1: most of the lives he touched would never be the same. 33 00:02:43,560 --> 00:02:46,880 Speaker 1: Marcell Marsielle was seeing as a man of God. He 34 00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:51,320 Speaker 1: founded Lalihian de Cristo, the Legion of Christ also known 35 00:02:51,360 --> 00:02:56,399 Speaker 1: as Rahnian Christi, one of the biggest, wealthiest, most respected 36 00:02:56,480 --> 00:03:02,280 Speaker 1: Catholic institutions in the world. He opened hundreds of schools 37 00:03:02,280 --> 00:03:06,640 Speaker 1: across the globe and convinced thousands of legionaries followers to 38 00:03:06,760 --> 00:03:11,799 Speaker 1: join his mission, people like me. I was a loyal 39 00:03:11,880 --> 00:03:15,600 Speaker 1: member of running Christie for twenty one years. I spent 40 00:03:15,800 --> 00:03:20,760 Speaker 1: years in Marcill Maziell service. That's why I know Marcill 41 00:03:20,880 --> 00:03:24,120 Speaker 1: Marciel was more than a holy figure. He was also 42 00:03:24,160 --> 00:03:27,760 Speaker 1: a man, and like all men, he was prone to temptation. 43 00:03:29,040 --> 00:03:33,360 Speaker 1: Behind the facade of holiness, Marsile was someone else, entirely, 44 00:03:34,560 --> 00:03:39,600 Speaker 1: a monster, someone leading a life of secrets, heavy, dark 45 00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:45,440 Speaker 1: and often unforgivable secrets, secrets that left hundreds of people 46 00:03:45,560 --> 00:03:49,320 Speaker 1: scarred for the rest of their lives, myself included. 47 00:03:52,320 --> 00:03:55,600 Speaker 2: As early as the nineteen fifties, the Vatican was aware 48 00:03:55,640 --> 00:04:02,440 Speaker 2: of Marcill Marciel's psychiatric problems. Conductora generio. 49 00:04:10,240 --> 00:04:14,320 Speaker 1: Marcell Maciel created a religious institution that's still around today. 50 00:04:15,240 --> 00:04:18,720 Speaker 1: He built something larger than life, but along the way 51 00:04:19,120 --> 00:04:24,480 Speaker 1: he destroyed countless lives. He was a man of many contradictions. 52 00:04:25,160 --> 00:04:29,200 Speaker 1: He called himself a conservative, salivate priest, but he had 53 00:04:29,279 --> 00:04:33,600 Speaker 1: many secret partners and children. He warned others about so 54 00:04:33,760 --> 00:04:37,760 Speaker 1: called deviant lifestyles, but he was an addict to opiates. 55 00:04:38,680 --> 00:04:42,520 Speaker 1: He preached humility but made millions of lives on fraud. 56 00:04:43,760 --> 00:04:47,800 Speaker 1: But more than anything, he was an abuser in every 57 00:04:47,839 --> 00:04:59,560 Speaker 1: possible way. This series is about him, but it's also 58 00:04:59,600 --> 00:05:03,320 Speaker 1: about me, about how I ended up as part of 59 00:05:03,360 --> 00:05:06,800 Speaker 1: his empire and became a piece in a huge, well 60 00:05:06,880 --> 00:05:12,000 Speaker 1: oiled machine built on lies. I thought I was helping people. 61 00:05:12,920 --> 00:05:16,680 Speaker 1: I really believed I was changing the world, but now 62 00:05:16,720 --> 00:05:23,200 Speaker 1: I know I was helping run a cult. My name 63 00:05:23,279 --> 00:05:27,080 Speaker 1: is Elena Sada, and this is my story. It's the 64 00:05:27,160 --> 00:05:30,960 Speaker 1: story of how I learned to hide, to cry, to survive, 65 00:05:31,360 --> 00:05:36,040 Speaker 1: and eventually how I got out. Over the past year, 66 00:05:36,279 --> 00:05:40,159 Speaker 1: whipped on dozens of interviews, and through them, I'll tell 67 00:05:40,200 --> 00:05:42,400 Speaker 1: you how my life changed the day I met a 68 00:05:42,440 --> 00:05:49,680 Speaker 1: man who hit so many awful things. Writing Painsight, this 69 00:05:49,880 --> 00:05:55,840 Speaker 1: is Sacred Scandal, The Many Secrets of Marseilles Massive Episode one, 70 00:05:56,680 --> 00:06:18,320 Speaker 1: a personal message from the Pope. Monterey, Mexico, where I'm from, 71 00:06:18,680 --> 00:06:23,640 Speaker 1: is a city filled with contrast. It is surrounded by 72 00:06:23,720 --> 00:06:27,520 Speaker 1: these massive, rocky mountains, the kind that feel like they 73 00:06:27,520 --> 00:06:31,360 Speaker 1: are watching over the city, and just when the stone 74 00:06:31,440 --> 00:06:35,120 Speaker 1: starts to soften, it gives way to thick pine forests, 75 00:06:35,720 --> 00:06:37,440 Speaker 1: the kind that smell like rain. 76 00:06:38,760 --> 00:06:40,760 Speaker 2: If you go up into those. 77 00:06:40,560 --> 00:06:45,280 Speaker 1: Hills, you'll find these enormous mansions stuck behind huge gates. 78 00:06:47,800 --> 00:06:51,920 Speaker 1: But down in the valley it's a very different story. 79 00:06:52,000 --> 00:06:57,200 Speaker 1: The poverty there is everywhere you look, crack sidewalks, kids 80 00:06:57,200 --> 00:07:02,840 Speaker 1: selling candy, and traffic families just trying to get by. 81 00:07:05,160 --> 00:07:08,000 Speaker 1: I grew up in the wealthy side of town. My 82 00:07:08,120 --> 00:07:11,960 Speaker 1: family has been part of Monterey for generations. They are 83 00:07:11,960 --> 00:07:15,680 Speaker 1: actually streets named after my relatives. They're part of the 84 00:07:15,760 --> 00:07:22,240 Speaker 1: quot Demock Brewery. That's a company behind those skis, Soul Bohemia, Tecate. 85 00:07:23,120 --> 00:07:25,800 Speaker 1: You've probably had one of those beers at some point. 86 00:07:28,120 --> 00:07:32,800 Speaker 1: I grew up saying its legacy everywhere on billboards, in supermarkets, 87 00:07:32,880 --> 00:07:37,240 Speaker 1: even in people's bridges. So yeah, I come from privilege, 88 00:07:37,600 --> 00:07:42,840 Speaker 1: There's no way around it. Growing up between those two 89 00:07:42,920 --> 00:07:45,880 Speaker 1: worlds it shaped a lot about how I saw things. 90 00:07:46,280 --> 00:07:48,600 Speaker 1: It taught me to notice people who didn't have the 91 00:07:48,600 --> 00:07:53,680 Speaker 1: same privilege as I did, to care. That came from 92 00:07:53,720 --> 00:07:58,200 Speaker 1: my parents, my grandparents, and even from school. I attended 93 00:07:58,240 --> 00:08:01,080 Speaker 1: a Catholic school run by the second Hard Nuns that 94 00:08:01,200 --> 00:08:04,720 Speaker 1: were affiliated to Jesuit priests, where they taught us about 95 00:08:04,720 --> 00:08:11,880 Speaker 1: compassion for the poor. But when I was eight something changed. 96 00:08:12,720 --> 00:08:17,080 Speaker 1: I started overhearing my parents talk about Los Legonardius, the 97 00:08:17,160 --> 00:08:26,000 Speaker 1: Legionaries of Christ. I was in third grade when they 98 00:08:26,040 --> 00:08:29,000 Speaker 1: told me they'd found a new, better school for me, 99 00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:34,160 Speaker 1: one run by the Legionnaies. This new academy, they said, 100 00:08:34,400 --> 00:08:38,680 Speaker 1: would bring me even closer to God. I remember my 101 00:08:38,800 --> 00:08:42,280 Speaker 1: parents saying the old School no longer aligned with their values. 102 00:08:42,800 --> 00:08:46,760 Speaker 1: The Catholic Nuns were becoming too liberal. They said, they 103 00:08:46,760 --> 00:08:50,880 Speaker 1: couldn't be trusted. They were favoring the poor and fostering 104 00:08:50,960 --> 00:08:56,240 Speaker 1: division between social classes. I didn't really get what they 105 00:08:56,280 --> 00:08:59,520 Speaker 1: were saying, but I was excited about being closer to God. 106 00:09:05,559 --> 00:09:08,320 Speaker 1: What I didn't realize at that time was that this 107 00:09:08,600 --> 00:09:12,600 Speaker 1: was all part of a much larger movement, one happening 108 00:09:12,679 --> 00:09:18,760 Speaker 1: across the world. It was nineteen seventy three. The success 109 00:09:18,800 --> 00:09:22,000 Speaker 1: of the Kuran Revolution had struck fear into the hearts 110 00:09:22,000 --> 00:09:27,280 Speaker 1: of elites everywhere and loyal Secret Scandal listeners will remember 111 00:09:27,320 --> 00:09:31,560 Speaker 1: the rights of liberation theology, the idea that Catholic priests 112 00:09:31,600 --> 00:09:36,160 Speaker 1: should address social and economic injustice. It was the same 113 00:09:36,240 --> 00:09:40,320 Speaker 1: ideology that would get Archibishop Bromero in a Salvador killed 114 00:09:40,320 --> 00:09:46,960 Speaker 1: on the pulpit. The wealthy fear the social revolution would 115 00:09:47,040 --> 00:09:50,559 Speaker 1: sweep away their privilege, and that the Church was complicit 116 00:09:50,640 --> 00:09:51,880 Speaker 1: in making that happen. 117 00:09:53,760 --> 00:09:55,600 Speaker 2: My parents were far from greedy. 118 00:09:56,200 --> 00:09:59,800 Speaker 1: My father, for instance, thought to get workers' unions established 119 00:10:00,040 --> 00:10:04,080 Speaker 1: Monterrey factories, but he and my mother fear the instability 120 00:10:04,080 --> 00:10:09,040 Speaker 1: that a revolution could bring. That's where the Legionaries of 121 00:10:09,120 --> 00:10:13,160 Speaker 1: Christ stepped in. It was a religious order that felt 122 00:10:13,200 --> 00:10:17,800 Speaker 1: like a divine shelter for these conservative families. Unlike the 123 00:10:18,200 --> 00:10:22,600 Speaker 1: quote unquote radical Jesuit priests, the Legionaries were more than 124 00:10:22,679 --> 00:10:26,120 Speaker 1: happy to take donations from the wealthy and continued to 125 00:10:26,200 --> 00:10:31,920 Speaker 1: bless them unquestioningly, all under the leadership of Marcial Maciel. 126 00:10:40,120 --> 00:10:45,400 Speaker 1: At my school, my classmates came from similar backgrounds to mine, privileged, 127 00:10:45,640 --> 00:10:49,960 Speaker 1: well connected families, and I noticed how involved some of 128 00:10:49,960 --> 00:10:53,160 Speaker 1: our mothers were. They spent a lot of time at 129 00:10:53,160 --> 00:10:56,200 Speaker 1: the school, carefully managing how they came across to the 130 00:10:56,240 --> 00:10:57,400 Speaker 1: priests and the teachers. 131 00:10:58,880 --> 00:11:01,000 Speaker 2: I remember a lot of talk about. 132 00:11:00,760 --> 00:11:07,720 Speaker 1: Donations for a gym, new classrooms. Thanks to the Legionnaires' criticisms, 133 00:11:08,040 --> 00:11:12,000 Speaker 1: many in my community started to despise the Jesuits, and 134 00:11:12,080 --> 00:11:18,640 Speaker 1: the Legionnaires were everything the Jesuits were not. At school, 135 00:11:18,720 --> 00:11:24,000 Speaker 1: we studied the usual subjects for our age, math, science, history, spelling, 136 00:11:24,679 --> 00:11:27,360 Speaker 1: but what really matter was a relationship with God. 137 00:11:28,360 --> 00:11:30,640 Speaker 2: Even as kids, we took religion. 138 00:11:30,280 --> 00:11:36,120 Speaker 1: And ethics just as seriously as arithmetic, and in every 139 00:11:36,120 --> 00:11:42,599 Speaker 1: classroom there was a portrait. He watched over everything, homework, quizzes, 140 00:11:43,000 --> 00:11:47,520 Speaker 1: even rees's a man in a cassock, the long black 141 00:11:47,640 --> 00:11:51,400 Speaker 1: robe worn by priests, with a white collar at his neck. 142 00:11:52,200 --> 00:11:55,480 Speaker 1: He had big, clear glasses and a soft smile. 143 00:11:57,360 --> 00:12:00,040 Speaker 2: He made us feel watched, not in a mean. 144 00:12:00,240 --> 00:12:03,960 Speaker 1: Way exactly, but enough to make you sit up straighter, 145 00:12:04,440 --> 00:12:08,120 Speaker 1: to be good, to be worth it. We looked up 146 00:12:08,160 --> 00:12:12,840 Speaker 1: to him, revered him. He wasn't just a priest. He 147 00:12:13,080 --> 00:12:18,200 Speaker 1: wasn't mister bare That's what we were told to call him. 148 00:12:18,400 --> 00:12:19,040 Speaker 2: It was, of. 149 00:12:19,000 --> 00:12:23,760 Speaker 1: Course, father Masiel. But the story we were told about 150 00:12:23,840 --> 00:12:29,600 Speaker 1: him wasn't exactly the truth. More on that after the Break. 151 00:12:46,480 --> 00:12:51,760 Speaker 1: Marcelle Masiell's origin story is a bit shadowy. People keep 152 00:12:51,840 --> 00:12:54,640 Speaker 1: trying to piece together how he became the man who 153 00:12:54,679 --> 00:12:59,080 Speaker 1: could persuade so many to follow him, all while leaving 154 00:12:59,200 --> 00:13:05,839 Speaker 1: a dark double life. But at school we were taught 155 00:13:05,840 --> 00:13:10,560 Speaker 1: a very specific mythology about him, one that made him 156 00:13:10,600 --> 00:13:15,320 Speaker 1: sound like our own, very Mexican Jesus. He was born 157 00:13:15,559 --> 00:13:17,960 Speaker 1: a long time ago on a dairy ranch in a 158 00:13:18,040 --> 00:13:21,720 Speaker 1: town called Kotika. We were told it was a town 159 00:13:21,760 --> 00:13:24,320 Speaker 1: that had just come out of a war, a place 160 00:13:24,360 --> 00:13:29,560 Speaker 1: where hardworking, deeply religious families like his were persecuted for 161 00:13:29,679 --> 00:13:35,040 Speaker 1: their faith. We learned his mother's name was Mamma Maurita, 162 00:13:35,679 --> 00:13:39,880 Speaker 1: and that the family had a pet cow called Mariposa Butterfly. 163 00:13:40,679 --> 00:13:45,040 Speaker 1: And yes, they made us memorize all this, we knew 164 00:13:45,080 --> 00:13:50,120 Speaker 1: the name of the family cow. In his twenties, he 165 00:13:50,240 --> 00:13:54,079 Speaker 1: received a divine calling, a mission entrusted to him by 166 00:13:54,120 --> 00:13:59,240 Speaker 1: God himself to gather a new generation of apostles, disciplined 167 00:13:59,360 --> 00:14:03,560 Speaker 1: and further. And that's how, in nineteen forty one the 168 00:14:03,679 --> 00:14:14,000 Speaker 1: Legionaries of Christ were born. Mozille wasn't just admired by us. 169 00:14:14,600 --> 00:14:18,000 Speaker 1: Mister Parre was beloved by someone we were taught to 170 00:14:18,040 --> 00:14:24,600 Speaker 1: admire just as deeply, Pope John Paul the Second. This 171 00:14:24,760 --> 00:14:27,920 Speaker 1: Pope wasn't like the ones in the history books. He 172 00:14:28,000 --> 00:14:31,080 Speaker 1: had a real connection to Mexico and the Latin America 173 00:14:31,080 --> 00:14:34,120 Speaker 1: as a whole. We were told he prayed for us, 174 00:14:34,320 --> 00:14:38,520 Speaker 1: cared for us. He was the first pope who wasn't Italian. 175 00:14:39,760 --> 00:14:42,520 Speaker 1: He came from a far away country that, like ours, 176 00:14:42,960 --> 00:14:47,200 Speaker 1: had been torn apart by warren inequity Poland. 177 00:14:49,880 --> 00:14:55,080 Speaker 3: Deemi pap Yeah, as well as a see it poloniae 178 00:14:55,720 --> 00:15:04,760 Speaker 3: day Joe Piero does dam young very goole sam Perfidel Jem. 179 00:15:05,200 --> 00:15:11,280 Speaker 1: Pierre, and in nineteen seventy nine, the Pope was going 180 00:15:11,320 --> 00:15:14,600 Speaker 1: to prove his love for the Mexican people by coming 181 00:15:14,640 --> 00:15:19,240 Speaker 1: in person to Seal's. We were specifically told that it 182 00:15:19,400 --> 00:15:22,760 Speaker 1: was Nuestra Parre Mazielle who played a big role in 183 00:15:22,840 --> 00:15:27,080 Speaker 1: making the Pope's visit happen. He helped with the diplomatic 184 00:15:27,200 --> 00:15:33,360 Speaker 1: negotiations that finally brought Jumpaul the Second to Mexico. I 185 00:15:33,360 --> 00:15:37,200 Speaker 1: was overwhelmed. The idea that his holiness was coming to 186 00:15:37,400 --> 00:15:41,000 Speaker 1: my hometown and rama even get to see him in 187 00:15:41,040 --> 00:15:47,680 Speaker 1: person felt unreal. I was fourteen when the Pope came 188 00:15:47,760 --> 00:15:51,280 Speaker 1: to Monterey. I had been in the Legionary School for 189 00:15:51,360 --> 00:15:54,600 Speaker 1: five years, and in every one of those years my 190 00:15:54,720 --> 00:16:01,120 Speaker 1: devotion to Father Mazielle had only grown. With some friends, 191 00:16:01,480 --> 00:16:04,280 Speaker 1: one of them had a camper, and the idea was 192 00:16:04,360 --> 00:16:08,280 Speaker 1: to sleep there over night. It sounds silly now, but 193 00:16:08,640 --> 00:16:10,080 Speaker 1: for me at that time. 194 00:16:10,160 --> 00:16:12,000 Speaker 2: It was huge. 195 00:16:12,240 --> 00:16:15,560 Speaker 1: My parents never let me do things like that, sleeping 196 00:16:15,600 --> 00:16:19,160 Speaker 1: in a camper with a group of teenagers. That would 197 00:16:19,240 --> 00:16:21,960 Speaker 1: be unthinkable on any other day. 198 00:16:22,560 --> 00:16:24,600 Speaker 2: But this wasn't just any day. 199 00:16:24,840 --> 00:16:29,680 Speaker 1: It was the Pope's visit. My parents didn't come with us. 200 00:16:30,280 --> 00:16:33,480 Speaker 1: They had a private meeting schedule with him. There were 201 00:16:33,520 --> 00:16:36,320 Speaker 1: seven of us kids and not enough room for everyone, 202 00:16:37,040 --> 00:16:44,040 Speaker 1: so they left us out. So I packed my things 203 00:16:44,040 --> 00:16:47,640 Speaker 1: into this camper and headed to the Santa Catarina River, 204 00:16:48,440 --> 00:16:51,320 Speaker 1: a wide river that was dry at the time and 205 00:16:51,520 --> 00:16:56,120 Speaker 1: overflows every time a storm hits. The Pope was going 206 00:16:56,200 --> 00:16:58,840 Speaker 1: to give his speech on one of the bridges that 207 00:16:58,920 --> 00:17:04,840 Speaker 1: crossed it. There were over a million people trying to 208 00:17:04,840 --> 00:17:09,080 Speaker 1: get close to that spot, and even though we arrived early, 209 00:17:09,440 --> 00:17:13,760 Speaker 1: traffic was already blocked. We had to leave the camper 210 00:17:13,840 --> 00:17:19,840 Speaker 1: behind and walk. We ended up right beneath the bridge. 211 00:17:20,440 --> 00:17:27,040 Speaker 1: It was January, below freezing. We spent the night huddled together, 212 00:17:27,359 --> 00:17:32,439 Speaker 1: sharing blankets, singing songs to keep on, and honestly, I 213 00:17:32,560 --> 00:17:35,639 Speaker 1: don't remember a single word the Pope said when he 214 00:17:35,760 --> 00:17:42,440 Speaker 1: finally appeared. What I remember is the cold. There were 215 00:17:42,440 --> 00:17:46,560 Speaker 1: people from all over the world, some privileged, some with nothing, 216 00:17:47,000 --> 00:17:52,600 Speaker 1: Christians non Christians. I remember this group of drunk Texans nearby. 217 00:17:53,480 --> 00:17:57,520 Speaker 1: When the Choiry sang got his love, they shouted back, 218 00:17:58,119 --> 00:18:04,600 Speaker 1: let's make love. I was mortified, cold, still, every minute 219 00:18:04,800 --> 00:18:10,600 Speaker 1: felt worth it, and it was after this experience that 220 00:18:10,720 --> 00:18:19,400 Speaker 1: I started thinking seriously about my future. I graduated from 221 00:18:19,440 --> 00:18:23,040 Speaker 1: high school with excellent grades. I applied to a few 222 00:18:23,040 --> 00:18:28,200 Speaker 1: colleges and got into all of them, including my dream school, Georgetown. 223 00:18:29,880 --> 00:18:35,919 Speaker 1: But something kept pulling me somewhere else. I was young, restless, 224 00:18:36,000 --> 00:18:39,600 Speaker 1: and wanted to change the world, maybe through the plomacy, 225 00:18:40,040 --> 00:18:44,040 Speaker 1: maybe through social work. I didn't know exactly how yet, 226 00:18:44,480 --> 00:18:48,600 Speaker 1: but I knew it would be through service. So while 227 00:18:48,640 --> 00:18:51,800 Speaker 1: most of my classmates stayed in college, I made a 228 00:18:51,840 --> 00:18:56,080 Speaker 1: different choice. I decided to volunteer for a year with 229 00:18:56,160 --> 00:19:03,119 Speaker 1: the Legion of christ They sent me to Spain. There 230 00:19:03,200 --> 00:19:07,720 Speaker 1: it was different. We were building something new, a youth center, 231 00:19:07,840 --> 00:19:12,000 Speaker 1: a family mission. I was busy every day meeting people, 232 00:19:12,480 --> 00:19:15,919 Speaker 1: telling them about our mission, recruiting them for Ryno Christie 233 00:19:15,920 --> 00:19:16,479 Speaker 1: and the Legion. 234 00:19:17,200 --> 00:19:19,240 Speaker 2: It felt pure, it felt good. 235 00:19:24,960 --> 00:19:29,399 Speaker 1: And then one day, out of nowhere, he came to 236 00:19:29,480 --> 00:19:35,000 Speaker 1: mister Pare Marcil Massill. The hallway fell silent when he entered. 237 00:19:35,760 --> 00:19:39,280 Speaker 1: Everyone would stand as if the judge had entered the courtroom. 238 00:19:41,920 --> 00:19:45,080 Speaker 1: I had seen him before at school at my parents' house, 239 00:19:46,119 --> 00:19:50,880 Speaker 1: mostly from a distance, a man behind the microphone. If 240 00:19:50,880 --> 00:19:56,040 Speaker 1: the year you didn't approach, But this time I was 241 00:19:56,080 --> 00:19:59,959 Speaker 1: in the room when he walked in. I looked at 242 00:20:00,359 --> 00:20:03,800 Speaker 1: trying not to stare, and then I felt it, a 243 00:20:03,920 --> 00:20:08,040 Speaker 1: presence stopping in front of me, a hand reaching out. 244 00:20:09,760 --> 00:20:13,520 Speaker 1: He looked me in the eyes, shook my hand, said 245 00:20:13,560 --> 00:20:16,960 Speaker 1: he remembered my family, said he knew who I was, 246 00:20:17,480 --> 00:20:22,320 Speaker 1: me of all people, and I really left an impression 247 00:20:22,400 --> 00:20:28,800 Speaker 1: on mister Patre, and for the first time we spoke 248 00:20:29,800 --> 00:20:39,200 Speaker 1: a real conversation, one that would change everything. He said, Elena, 249 00:20:40,080 --> 00:20:46,000 Speaker 1: I think you should stay. I asked, what do you mean. 250 00:20:47,480 --> 00:20:51,840 Speaker 1: He said, yeah, I think you should stay get consecrated. 251 00:20:53,480 --> 00:20:55,800 Speaker 2: I said, we will see what God. 252 00:20:55,600 --> 00:21:01,440 Speaker 1: Says, mister Padre, and he just smiled and said, it's 253 00:21:01,600 --> 00:21:05,520 Speaker 1: very simple. You just say God, I don't know what 254 00:21:05,560 --> 00:21:08,119 Speaker 1: you want from me, but I want to give you 255 00:21:08,160 --> 00:21:19,479 Speaker 1: my life. I was nineteen, lost insight my own skin, 256 00:21:20,160 --> 00:21:23,520 Speaker 1: and the truth is I believed myself was the word 257 00:21:23,560 --> 00:21:26,919 Speaker 1: of God. I knew there and then that I was 258 00:21:27,000 --> 00:21:34,480 Speaker 1: going to get consecrated. Part of me still dreamed about Georgetown, 259 00:21:34,920 --> 00:21:38,879 Speaker 1: about college, about everything I had worked for, about the 260 00:21:38,920 --> 00:21:44,000 Speaker 1: life I thought I wanted, and yet I really wanted 261 00:21:44,040 --> 00:21:46,679 Speaker 1: to do God's will. And I had been taught to 262 00:21:46,680 --> 00:21:50,240 Speaker 1: distrust the voice of my own conscience and give preference 263 00:21:50,320 --> 00:21:54,400 Speaker 1: to the will of God, communicated through superiors in Rayne 264 00:21:54,440 --> 00:22:00,080 Speaker 1: and Christie. I stayed up nights wrestling with it. I 265 00:22:00,080 --> 00:22:03,640 Speaker 1: imagine myself boarding a plane back home or to the States, 266 00:22:04,160 --> 00:22:10,000 Speaker 1: sitting in college classrooms, making new friends, and then I 267 00:22:10,000 --> 00:22:16,479 Speaker 1: imagine this all their life, quiet, devoted, a life where 268 00:22:16,520 --> 00:22:21,080 Speaker 1: every choice I made would matter eternally, a life that 269 00:22:21,320 --> 00:22:28,480 Speaker 1: wasn't mine anymore but his. And in the end I stayed. 270 00:22:29,520 --> 00:22:33,760 Speaker 1: I told myself it was the harder choice, the braver one, 271 00:22:34,520 --> 00:22:38,600 Speaker 1: the one that demanded sacrifice, and that meant it had 272 00:22:38,640 --> 00:22:42,800 Speaker 1: to be the right path. The door to heaven is narrow, 273 00:22:43,560 --> 00:22:48,840 Speaker 1: my directors would say, when I questioned it, You're lacking generosity, 274 00:22:49,040 --> 00:22:57,960 Speaker 1: they would say. I entered training to become a concertrata, 275 00:22:58,400 --> 00:23:02,919 Speaker 1: a consecrative woman, not exactly a none, but close a 276 00:23:03,000 --> 00:23:06,880 Speaker 1: none for the Legion of Christ. The training to become 277 00:23:06,920 --> 00:23:10,320 Speaker 1: a concertrata was in Rome, and it wasn't just prayer 278 00:23:10,400 --> 00:23:14,880 Speaker 1: and classes. It was a slow, steady on making of 279 00:23:14,920 --> 00:23:18,880 Speaker 1: who I had been, a careful remaking of who they 280 00:23:19,000 --> 00:23:23,880 Speaker 1: wanted me to become. Each day that passed, the weight 281 00:23:23,960 --> 00:23:26,800 Speaker 1: of what I was doing sank a little deeper into 282 00:23:26,840 --> 00:23:31,440 Speaker 1: my bones. I made my promises to the church, to 283 00:23:31,480 --> 00:23:35,400 Speaker 1: rein in christie to God, to live in poverty, chastity 284 00:23:35,440 --> 00:23:40,400 Speaker 1: and obedience for life. To me, it was like accepting 285 00:23:40,440 --> 00:23:43,680 Speaker 1: a death sentence. But it was the will of God 286 00:23:44,200 --> 00:23:49,159 Speaker 1: because Masiele had said it when Vau was called the 287 00:23:49,240 --> 00:23:54,760 Speaker 1: private promise, never question, never doubt the actions of superiors 288 00:23:54,880 --> 00:23:58,960 Speaker 1: or the rules within the movement, and always report criticism. 289 00:24:00,720 --> 00:24:04,879 Speaker 1: It felt strange, but I convinced myself it was proof 290 00:24:04,920 --> 00:24:08,000 Speaker 1: of my fidelity and loyalty to the will of God, 291 00:24:08,720 --> 00:24:12,080 Speaker 1: because Masielle had been inspired by God to write all 292 00:24:12,119 --> 00:24:16,800 Speaker 1: those roles we leby, and the Church had approved them, 293 00:24:16,920 --> 00:24:22,240 Speaker 1: or at least that is what we were told. And 294 00:24:22,280 --> 00:24:26,080 Speaker 1: then came the ceremony that day. The director put a 295 00:24:26,160 --> 00:24:32,280 Speaker 1: ring on my finger. It was a simple ring, delicate gold, 296 00:24:32,640 --> 00:24:37,760 Speaker 1: almost pretty, but I understood what it really was, a 297 00:24:37,840 --> 00:24:43,480 Speaker 1: mark of belonging. I were it like armor, like proof 298 00:24:43,520 --> 00:24:47,040 Speaker 1: that I had given everything, that I was God's wife, 299 00:24:47,840 --> 00:24:50,960 Speaker 1: even the parts of myself I wasn't sure I should give, 300 00:24:52,320 --> 00:24:58,679 Speaker 1: And somehow it felt safe. I felt chosen, and I was, 301 00:24:59,280 --> 00:25:03,800 Speaker 1: but not the reasons I thought, not. Because I loved 302 00:25:03,840 --> 00:25:08,040 Speaker 1: sitting with children, talking to them about God and their dreams, 303 00:25:09,119 --> 00:25:13,960 Speaker 1: not because I spent weekends visiting families, traveling to small towns. 304 00:25:14,080 --> 00:25:20,560 Speaker 1: Most people had forgotten. I was chosen because of something 305 00:25:20,600 --> 00:25:24,480 Speaker 1: that had nothing to do with who I was. I 306 00:25:24,640 --> 00:25:29,000 Speaker 1: was chosen because of my family, because of my last name, 307 00:25:29,080 --> 00:25:33,040 Speaker 1: and the doors it could open to be part of 308 00:25:33,080 --> 00:25:35,800 Speaker 1: the legion of Christ. You didn't need to be either 309 00:25:35,880 --> 00:25:43,280 Speaker 1: brilliant or charismatic or just well off. Then there were 310 00:25:43,800 --> 00:25:48,560 Speaker 1: other things, things no one ever said out loud, but 311 00:25:48,640 --> 00:25:51,840 Speaker 1: you could see them clearly, Like how they chose the 312 00:25:51,840 --> 00:25:55,920 Speaker 1: girls they wanted to represent the movement. They picked girls 313 00:25:55,960 --> 00:26:02,120 Speaker 1: who looked a certain way, light skin, body, polished manners, 314 00:26:03,160 --> 00:26:07,159 Speaker 1: the kind of image that pleased donors and made the movement. 315 00:26:07,000 --> 00:26:08,439 Speaker 2: Look clean and holy. 316 00:26:10,119 --> 00:26:15,080 Speaker 1: It was the whole hegemonic, antiquated esthetic, what a good 317 00:26:15,280 --> 00:26:19,600 Speaker 1: Catholic girl was supposed to look like. If you didn't 318 00:26:19,640 --> 00:26:22,879 Speaker 1: fit that mold, they found a reason to look the 319 00:26:22,920 --> 00:26:26,399 Speaker 1: other way. And I was the kind of girl they'd 320 00:26:26,480 --> 00:26:32,600 Speaker 1: like to put out front. Still, the dad scrept in 321 00:26:33,359 --> 00:26:39,000 Speaker 1: small at first, then louder a suspicion that something wasn't right. 322 00:26:40,119 --> 00:26:41,440 Speaker 2: I tried to shake it off. 323 00:26:42,080 --> 00:26:44,440 Speaker 1: I wanted to believe it was all in my head, 324 00:26:46,119 --> 00:26:50,600 Speaker 1: and when I couldn't, someone was even more authority than 325 00:26:50,720 --> 00:26:56,119 Speaker 1: Mozielle himself stepped in and silenced those doubts for good. 326 00:26:59,000 --> 00:27:15,560 Speaker 1: That's after the brain. It was a bright spring morning 327 00:27:15,800 --> 00:27:19,679 Speaker 1: in nineteen eighty four. I was in Rome studying to 328 00:27:19,720 --> 00:27:24,600 Speaker 1: become a concertada. Like many days, I went to Saint 329 00:27:24,640 --> 00:27:28,760 Speaker 1: Peter's Basilica for Mass. If you've never been, and even 330 00:27:28,760 --> 00:27:34,160 Speaker 1: if you're not Catholic, Saint Peter's is breathtaking. The walls 331 00:27:34,200 --> 00:27:38,720 Speaker 1: are covered in centuries old art sculptures by Mike Langelo 332 00:27:38,760 --> 00:27:43,439 Speaker 1: and Bernini. Lights spill seemed like it's been filtered through gold. 333 00:27:44,320 --> 00:27:47,880 Speaker 1: And at the heart of it all the altar where 334 00:27:47,920 --> 00:27:53,840 Speaker 1: the Pope himself celebrates Mass, and not just any pope. 335 00:27:54,400 --> 00:27:58,359 Speaker 1: John Paul the Second, the one we felt so deeply 336 00:27:58,400 --> 00:28:02,800 Speaker 1: connected to in Mexico. He even honored La Virgen de 337 00:28:02,880 --> 00:28:07,119 Speaker 1: la Lupe the same way we did, and he also 338 00:28:07,200 --> 00:28:16,280 Speaker 1: knew Mosiel personally. On certain days, a handful of people 339 00:28:16,320 --> 00:28:19,879 Speaker 1: were allowed to approach him after Mass to receive a 340 00:28:19,920 --> 00:28:25,399 Speaker 1: close blessing to kiss his hand. I was already seated 341 00:28:25,520 --> 00:28:29,399 Speaker 1: near the front that day, and when Mass ended, I 342 00:28:29,520 --> 00:28:32,840 Speaker 1: was invited along with a dozen or some others to 343 00:28:32,920 --> 00:28:38,680 Speaker 1: come forward. I waited in line, heart pounding, my palms 344 00:28:38,720 --> 00:28:43,239 Speaker 1: were sweating, and when it was finally my turn, I 345 00:28:43,320 --> 00:28:46,760 Speaker 1: knelt in front of him, kissed his hand, looked up 346 00:28:46,760 --> 00:28:50,640 Speaker 1: into his face, and he looked back at me directly, 347 00:28:51,720 --> 00:28:55,240 Speaker 1: and in Spanish, he said these words, I'll never forget. 348 00:28:58,200 --> 00:29:07,080 Speaker 1: Mazille is muyamlo, Father, Masille is very loved. I stood 349 00:29:07,200 --> 00:29:11,320 Speaker 1: before the highest authority of the church, the moral compass 350 00:29:11,480 --> 00:29:15,600 Speaker 1: of the world, and heard from his own mouth his 351 00:29:15,800 --> 00:29:19,800 Speaker 1: admiration for a man I would later discover to be 352 00:29:20,000 --> 00:29:27,960 Speaker 1: a monster, and all of us his concertatas his priests. 353 00:29:28,400 --> 00:29:33,000 Speaker 1: The entire organization was built around supporting and hiding his 354 00:29:33,240 --> 00:29:49,640 Speaker 1: sick double life. But to really see the full picture, 355 00:29:50,120 --> 00:29:53,400 Speaker 1: to understand how the darkness grew, we have to look 356 00:29:53,480 --> 00:29:58,320 Speaker 1: further back, back to the early twentieth century to replace 357 00:29:58,440 --> 00:30:02,680 Speaker 1: shaped by war, by resecution, and by a boy who 358 00:30:02,680 --> 00:30:08,600 Speaker 1: would one day call himself father. I'm talking about the 359 00:30:08,600 --> 00:30:13,920 Speaker 1: state of Michua Gan in southern Mexico, specifically the town 360 00:30:13,960 --> 00:30:21,360 Speaker 1: of Kotika near the border with Kalisko. I sometimes try 361 00:30:21,400 --> 00:30:24,800 Speaker 1: to picture mysel as a boy growing up in the 362 00:30:24,840 --> 00:30:29,440 Speaker 1: shadows of the Mexican Revolution, a time when simply being 363 00:30:29,600 --> 00:30:30,920 Speaker 1: Catholic could make. 364 00:30:30,840 --> 00:30:31,600 Speaker 2: You a target. 365 00:30:32,280 --> 00:30:37,480 Speaker 1: When churches were burned, princes were hunted, Families lived in fear, 366 00:30:38,160 --> 00:30:41,280 Speaker 1: not because they had broken laws, but because they dared 367 00:30:41,320 --> 00:30:46,560 Speaker 1: to pray. This was the world of the Cristado War, 368 00:30:47,320 --> 00:30:50,400 Speaker 1: when the government stripped the Catholic Church of its land, 369 00:30:50,760 --> 00:30:56,360 Speaker 1: its power, its voice, and for many devout Catholics, it 370 00:30:56,520 --> 00:31:03,920 Speaker 1: wasn't just politics. It was survival. Ordinary people, farmers, teachers, mothers, 371 00:31:03,960 --> 00:31:08,840 Speaker 1: sons took up arms to defender faith. It was in 372 00:31:08,880 --> 00:31:13,560 Speaker 1: the middle of all that fear, violence and chios that 373 00:31:13,600 --> 00:31:14,840 Speaker 1: Marzille was born. 374 00:31:16,760 --> 00:31:21,400 Speaker 4: Marcial Mazill Nase and Minos Into spendin is Sobrino Carnal 375 00:31:21,440 --> 00:31:27,560 Speaker 4: del General, Jesuz Goyado Guiza Generali and Heros Cristeros Keelke Sanzio, 376 00:31:28,160 --> 00:31:30,440 Speaker 4: Cristerras Guandolos Arelos Manuel. 377 00:31:31,440 --> 00:31:36,360 Speaker 1: This is Fernando Gonzalez. He's a psychologist and historian who 378 00:31:36,400 --> 00:31:40,520 Speaker 1: spent the last thirty years researching their relationship between church 379 00:31:40,600 --> 00:31:45,160 Speaker 1: and state in Mexico, and he studied the life and 380 00:31:45,320 --> 00:31:52,120 Speaker 1: the shadow of Marcel Marzill in depth. Fernando told us 381 00:31:52,240 --> 00:31:55,920 Speaker 1: Marcile was born in nineteen twenty into a family tied 382 00:31:56,000 --> 00:32:00,880 Speaker 1: to both faith and power. One of his sons, hental 383 00:32:00,960 --> 00:32:04,280 Speaker 1: Je suse Goyado, was a leader of the Cristeto Army. 384 00:32:05,080 --> 00:32:08,720 Speaker 1: He even helped negotiate peace with the Mexican government in 385 00:32:08,880 --> 00:32:14,760 Speaker 1: nineteen twenty nine. Another uncle, Rafael Gisari Valencia, was a 386 00:32:14,840 --> 00:32:19,040 Speaker 1: bishop and later canonized as a saint for protecting his 387 00:32:19,200 --> 00:32:25,680 Speaker 1: parisioners during the darkest days of the Christiana. In Massiele's size, 388 00:32:26,160 --> 00:32:30,640 Speaker 1: faith wasn't just a family legacy. It was a divine inheritance. 389 00:32:31,760 --> 00:32:37,360 Speaker 1: Religion wasn't about humility. It was about conquest, about destiny. 390 00:32:39,200 --> 00:32:43,480 Speaker 1: He wasn't interested in ordinary schooling. He didn't dream about 391 00:32:43,560 --> 00:32:47,440 Speaker 1: a simple life. From the start, he knew he would 392 00:32:47,560 --> 00:32:51,800 Speaker 1: rise inside the church, he would lead, he would be more, 393 00:32:54,040 --> 00:32:58,080 Speaker 1: and to begin that climb, he turned to yet another relative, 394 00:32:59,000 --> 00:33:00,840 Speaker 1: this time Jesuit. 395 00:33:00,560 --> 00:33:09,280 Speaker 4: Priest Jello prote Ilomanda al Seminario de LOSAs and Stashunigos 396 00:33:09,320 --> 00:33:15,080 Speaker 4: Can moment Seminario in Terio in Nepasotecas. 397 00:33:16,240 --> 00:33:19,200 Speaker 1: In the mid nineteen thirties, Maziel was sent to the 398 00:33:19,280 --> 00:33:23,840 Speaker 1: Injurdiocesan Seminary in New Mexico, a training ground for future 399 00:33:23,880 --> 00:33:29,440 Speaker 1: priests run by the Jesuits. But Mazille wasn't interested in 400 00:33:29,600 --> 00:33:35,080 Speaker 1: becoming just another priest. Even then, he was different. He 401 00:33:35,280 --> 00:33:39,800 Speaker 1: was studying something far more useful than theology. How to 402 00:33:40,000 --> 00:33:45,280 Speaker 1: bend rules without getting caught, How to build trust while 403 00:33:45,360 --> 00:33:50,000 Speaker 1: hiding the truth, How to create an image and weaponize it. 404 00:33:51,760 --> 00:33:55,280 Speaker 1: But hiding your true self only works for so long. 405 00:33:56,240 --> 00:33:59,560 Speaker 1: While in the seminary, Maziel had been hiding a part 406 00:33:59,600 --> 00:34:03,560 Speaker 1: of himself else even then, he had a secret double life. 407 00:34:04,720 --> 00:34:08,040 Speaker 1: And one night it all came crashing down. 408 00:34:12,360 --> 00:34:26,280 Speaker 4: Durhen contraon dormiendo colon colonne, direct amente media, seminario, direct 409 00:34:26,280 --> 00:34:29,120 Speaker 4: amente ions lo correno. 410 00:34:33,120 --> 00:34:38,480 Speaker 1: He was found in bed with another man. Scandal wasn't tolerated, 411 00:34:39,040 --> 00:34:43,320 Speaker 1: not even whispered about. He had thirty minutes to disappear 412 00:34:43,360 --> 00:34:49,880 Speaker 1: from the seminary, no questions asked. He learned an important lesson. 413 00:34:50,760 --> 00:34:55,080 Speaker 1: If you fall, you don't confess, you don't explain, You 414 00:34:55,280 --> 00:35:00,319 Speaker 1: bury it deeper, and you smile even wider. He still 415 00:35:00,480 --> 00:35:04,120 Speaker 1: managed to slip away with barely a stain in his name. 416 00:35:05,760 --> 00:35:09,120 Speaker 1: The habit of hiding had already begun, and he would 417 00:35:09,239 --> 00:35:15,040 Speaker 1: only get better at it. Masiel also had something else 418 00:35:15,160 --> 00:35:18,000 Speaker 1: to help him out, a powerful last name. 419 00:35:18,920 --> 00:35:20,560 Speaker 2: His family was deeply. 420 00:35:20,320 --> 00:35:28,520 Speaker 1: Connected to the Catholic Church, respected, influential, untouchable. So when 421 00:35:28,560 --> 00:35:32,279 Speaker 1: trouble found him, he did what he always did. He 422 00:35:32,400 --> 00:35:37,040 Speaker 1: turned to them, this time to another uncle, the Bishop 423 00:35:37,120 --> 00:35:44,840 Speaker 1: of Cornavaca. Under his uncle's protection, Maziele finished his studies 424 00:35:45,680 --> 00:35:49,440 Speaker 1: and in November of nineteen forty four he was ordained 425 00:35:49,520 --> 00:35:55,560 Speaker 1: a priest. But for Masiell, just becoming a priest wasn't enough. 426 00:35:56,920 --> 00:36:00,560 Speaker 1: He didn't want to serve inside someone else's system. He 427 00:36:00,760 --> 00:36:05,880 Speaker 1: wanted to create his own. Maybe he realized early on 428 00:36:06,440 --> 00:36:10,440 Speaker 1: that he would never survive under true supervision, that he 429 00:36:10,560 --> 00:36:13,760 Speaker 1: needed a structure he could control from the very beginning, 430 00:36:14,480 --> 00:36:20,000 Speaker 1: one built around him, not above him. And so, at 431 00:36:20,239 --> 00:36:24,520 Speaker 1: just twenty one years old, he founded a new religious movement, 432 00:36:25,400 --> 00:36:30,600 Speaker 1: l Lehion de Cristo, the Legion of Christ. It wasn't 433 00:36:30,760 --> 00:36:35,480 Speaker 1: just a name, it was a vision, an army, his army, 434 00:36:37,880 --> 00:36:42,040 Speaker 1: and to grow it, he needed followers, he needed buildings, 435 00:36:42,560 --> 00:36:46,200 Speaker 1: he needed money. So he did what he was already 436 00:36:46,400 --> 00:36:50,040 Speaker 1: very good at. He went out and started selling a 437 00:36:50,239 --> 00:36:56,680 Speaker 1: dream picture a traveling salesman in the nineteen forties. But 438 00:36:56,840 --> 00:37:00,279 Speaker 1: instead of a flat hat and a suitcase, Masille wore 439 00:37:00,320 --> 00:37:05,000 Speaker 1: a black cassockh And what he was selling wasn't sober 440 00:37:05,160 --> 00:37:10,360 Speaker 1: encyclopedias like those salesmen. He was selling the latest invention 441 00:37:10,600 --> 00:37:14,080 Speaker 1: in a way, not a product. It was more of 442 00:37:14,160 --> 00:37:21,200 Speaker 1: a service. He was selling salvation. You have to remember 443 00:37:21,680 --> 00:37:26,720 Speaker 1: this was nineteen fourties Mexico, a deeply Catholic country. Christs 444 00:37:26,760 --> 00:37:32,520 Speaker 1: weren't just respected, they were venerated. And Mozille didn't just. 445 00:37:32,640 --> 00:37:33,279 Speaker 2: Look the part. 446 00:37:34,000 --> 00:37:38,960 Speaker 1: He was tall, slim, with perfectly sleeked back, blonde hair, 447 00:37:39,520 --> 00:37:44,959 Speaker 1: and clear, dreamy blue eyes. He looked angelic, like someone 448 00:37:45,000 --> 00:37:50,319 Speaker 1: who had already spoken with God. So armed with all 449 00:37:50,440 --> 00:37:54,279 Speaker 1: these advantages, he knocked on doors and pitched the dream, 450 00:37:55,320 --> 00:37:59,720 Speaker 1: the chance to join a growing movement, a movement blessed 451 00:37:59,760 --> 00:38:05,239 Speaker 1: by God. He started in Couernavaca and made his way 452 00:38:05,320 --> 00:38:09,600 Speaker 1: through other cities in Mexico. He traveled to Mexico City, 453 00:38:09,680 --> 00:38:14,120 Speaker 1: of course, and then Monterey, where he met families like mine. 454 00:38:15,600 --> 00:38:18,239 Speaker 1: They had money to spare, and they were worried that 455 00:38:18,440 --> 00:38:22,520 Speaker 1: Catholics they once trusted, like the Jesuits, were becoming a 456 00:38:22,680 --> 00:38:28,520 Speaker 1: dangerous influence for their children. So families like mine trusted 457 00:38:28,600 --> 00:38:32,200 Speaker 1: Masill to keep their best interests, and they handed over 458 00:38:32,440 --> 00:38:38,960 Speaker 1: large amounts of money. He also started schools. These were 459 00:38:39,160 --> 00:38:42,920 Speaker 1: a secure way of getting more and more money. It 460 00:38:43,120 --> 00:38:46,600 Speaker 1: wasn't only the high tuition, but also donations for the 461 00:38:46,680 --> 00:38:47,200 Speaker 1: movement to. 462 00:38:47,239 --> 00:38:49,040 Speaker 2: Become larger and larger. 463 00:38:50,320 --> 00:38:54,000 Speaker 1: He learned to put high society mothers against each other, 464 00:38:54,640 --> 00:38:55,880 Speaker 1: using their desire to. 465 00:38:56,000 --> 00:38:57,240 Speaker 2: Outshine one another. 466 00:38:57,400 --> 00:39:03,680 Speaker 1: To rake in cash, Marzielle raised funds, made connections, and 467 00:39:03,840 --> 00:39:08,520 Speaker 1: with each meeting he learned something deeper. How to tap 468 00:39:08,640 --> 00:39:13,000 Speaker 1: into people's spiritual hunger, how to offer certainty to those 469 00:39:13,120 --> 00:39:18,200 Speaker 1: desperate from meaning, how to create loyalty without ever revealing 470 00:39:18,360 --> 00:39:24,960 Speaker 1: your true self. He wasn't just fundraising, he was practicing 471 00:39:25,040 --> 00:39:32,239 Speaker 1: a formula, perfecting it. But Mexico wasn't enough. If he 472 00:39:32,400 --> 00:39:35,799 Speaker 1: wanted real power, the kind that could protect him from 473 00:39:35,960 --> 00:39:40,600 Speaker 1: any and all authorities, he had to hire. So he 474 00:39:40,719 --> 00:39:44,560 Speaker 1: set his sight on Europe, a continent still broken from 475 00:39:44,640 --> 00:39:48,600 Speaker 1: war and more importantly home to the Vatican. 476 00:39:50,160 --> 00:39:56,200 Speaker 4: He en Rome and cardinalist Husando dineiros U Sandos, who 477 00:39:56,760 --> 00:40:00,080 Speaker 4: charminmin He. 478 00:40:00,160 --> 00:40:04,279 Speaker 1: Had charmed, yes, but more than that, he was a 479 00:40:04,440 --> 00:40:10,520 Speaker 1: mastercn artist. He learned people's values, their weaknesses, their aspirations, 480 00:40:11,280 --> 00:40:13,120 Speaker 1: and he adapted, fitting. 481 00:40:12,920 --> 00:40:14,080 Speaker 2: On whatever moved them. 482 00:40:14,800 --> 00:40:20,840 Speaker 1: Ambition, secrecy, money, and not just from desperate followers, but 483 00:40:21,040 --> 00:40:26,479 Speaker 1: from the very gatekeepers of the Catholic Church. He spent 484 00:40:26,680 --> 00:40:30,560 Speaker 1: most of his time in Spain and Italy. Day after 485 00:40:30,760 --> 00:40:35,320 Speaker 1: day he charmed bishops, one of our cardinals, and whispered 486 00:40:35,440 --> 00:40:41,680 Speaker 1: promises behind closed doors, and little by little he wasn't 487 00:40:41,840 --> 00:40:45,840 Speaker 1: just building a movement. He was thriving behind the shield 488 00:40:45,920 --> 00:40:51,719 Speaker 1: he had built. The Vatican needed someone like him, not 489 00:40:52,000 --> 00:40:54,719 Speaker 1: just a man of faith, but a man of strategy. 490 00:40:56,280 --> 00:41:00,600 Speaker 1: The revolutions sweeping across Latin America, the right of Savi Kirism, 491 00:41:01,160 --> 00:41:04,399 Speaker 1: the weakening grip of the Church, all of it made 492 00:41:04,480 --> 00:41:10,680 Speaker 1: them desperate. Mexico had survived a bloody religious war, the 493 00:41:10,800 --> 00:41:15,239 Speaker 1: scars were still fresh, and the Church couldn't afford to 494 00:41:15,320 --> 00:41:21,080 Speaker 1: lose its hold again. They didn't want a saint, they 495 00:41:21,200 --> 00:41:24,919 Speaker 1: wanted a strong man, and Mosiele convinced them he could 496 00:41:24,960 --> 00:41:32,280 Speaker 1: be exactly that. He made himself indispensable, their protector, their weapon, 497 00:41:33,800 --> 00:41:37,719 Speaker 1: and in return they closed their eyes and handed him 498 00:41:37,760 --> 00:41:43,160 Speaker 1: the power, even the Pope himself, the same pope who 499 00:41:43,400 --> 00:41:47,480 Speaker 1: years later would look me in the eyes and say, Father, 500 00:41:47,640 --> 00:41:53,960 Speaker 1: Masielle is very loved. And that's how Mosiele saw me, 501 00:41:55,480 --> 00:41:58,640 Speaker 1: not as a soul to guide, not as a future leader. 502 00:41:59,560 --> 00:42:03,760 Speaker 1: He saw Throul a wealthy name, it trust, a family, 503 00:42:04,600 --> 00:42:09,680 Speaker 1: and asked to expand his reach. I thought I was 504 00:42:09,800 --> 00:42:13,640 Speaker 1: being chosen to change the world, or what he chose 505 00:42:13,840 --> 00:42:18,000 Speaker 1: was everything I could give him, my influence, my loyalty, 506 00:42:18,400 --> 00:42:24,840 Speaker 1: my blind devotion. Without even realizing it, I became another 507 00:42:24,960 --> 00:42:29,560 Speaker 1: piece of his empire. And while I was still caught 508 00:42:29,719 --> 00:42:33,920 Speaker 1: in the glove of being chosen in the highest corridors 509 00:42:34,000 --> 00:42:38,240 Speaker 1: of the church, the truth was already starting to leak out. 510 00:42:39,440 --> 00:42:42,760 Speaker 4: In our ghost other sequent I say mass venus manda 511 00:42:42,840 --> 00:42:48,279 Speaker 4: nuna carta roma di sieno special RELATIONI sexualist connience say 512 00:42:48,640 --> 00:42:52,200 Speaker 4: droga spiritual etta. 513 00:42:53,760 --> 00:42:57,239 Speaker 1: A letter was under Rome in nineteen fifty six. It 514 00:42:57,360 --> 00:43:03,000 Speaker 1: accused myself of serious wrongdoing, of doing drugs or molesting children. 515 00:43:04,000 --> 00:43:06,160 Speaker 2: This was in nineteen fifty six. 516 00:43:07,040 --> 00:43:10,839 Speaker 1: I wasn't even alive yet, a lifetime ago, and yet 517 00:43:11,640 --> 00:43:18,799 Speaker 1: the truth about him was already known. But nothing ever 518 00:43:19,000 --> 00:43:24,680 Speaker 1: happened with that letter. In fact, for years, letters and 519 00:43:24,800 --> 00:43:30,600 Speaker 1: complains about Masielle were filed multiple times, but somehow, for 520 00:43:30,760 --> 00:43:36,239 Speaker 1: more than four decades, Masille's crimes were hidden, buried by 521 00:43:36,280 --> 00:43:39,440 Speaker 1: a network of people with a vested interest in keeping 522 00:43:39,560 --> 00:43:47,600 Speaker 1: Masille's image pure, a great church that included me. I, 523 00:43:48,520 --> 00:43:51,800 Speaker 1: the girl from Monterey who wanted to change the world, 524 00:43:52,239 --> 00:43:56,000 Speaker 1: who believed in justice and goodness, had already become part 525 00:43:56,080 --> 00:44:00,480 Speaker 1: of something else, part of the lie of the machine, 526 00:44:01,280 --> 00:44:03,719 Speaker 1: of the structure that kept him untouchable. 527 00:44:06,080 --> 00:44:07,719 Speaker 2: And I made people believe in it. 528 00:44:09,239 --> 00:44:13,880 Speaker 1: I made people believe in him, and that's something I 529 00:44:14,040 --> 00:44:16,640 Speaker 1: have to live with every single day. 530 00:44:22,320 --> 00:44:38,080 Speaker 2: Yes, so sorry, that's also me. 531 00:44:38,640 --> 00:44:38,839 Speaker 3: Yes. 532 00:44:40,000 --> 00:44:43,960 Speaker 1: During this series, you'll hear me speaking somewhere else in 533 00:44:44,120 --> 00:44:46,920 Speaker 1: one of the many introdews I had with my producers, 534 00:44:47,840 --> 00:44:51,080 Speaker 1: because the story I'm about to tell it's not an 535 00:44:51,160 --> 00:44:55,400 Speaker 1: easy one, and it wasn't exactly easy to open up about, 536 00:44:56,280 --> 00:45:01,839 Speaker 1: even though most of it happened so long ago. Sometimes 537 00:45:02,480 --> 00:45:05,840 Speaker 1: when we go through something traumatic, the brain does what 538 00:45:05,960 --> 00:45:10,400 Speaker 1: it needs to survive. It creates distance, It builds a 539 00:45:10,520 --> 00:45:12,719 Speaker 1: version of us who lived through the worst of it 540 00:45:13,320 --> 00:45:18,600 Speaker 1: while the rest of us carry on. So in this podcast, 541 00:45:19,000 --> 00:45:22,640 Speaker 1: you'll hear both of those voices, the me telling the 542 00:45:22,760 --> 00:45:26,239 Speaker 1: story and the one who's still trying to understand it. 543 00:45:27,640 --> 00:45:32,680 Speaker 1: Because when the memory started coming back, really coming back, it. 544 00:45:32,800 --> 00:45:35,320 Speaker 2: Wasn't just what I had lived through that shook me. 545 00:45:36,560 --> 00:45:39,600 Speaker 1: It was what I had unknowingly passed on to others, 546 00:45:42,320 --> 00:45:45,120 Speaker 1: not knowing how many people I may have affected. 547 00:45:45,680 --> 00:45:49,160 Speaker 2: Still waits on me. Some days. It's unbearable. 548 00:45:50,440 --> 00:45:53,120 Speaker 1: Because as the Legion of Christ reached the height of 549 00:45:53,200 --> 00:45:59,000 Speaker 1: its power, its money, its influence, its global prestige, Marcille 550 00:45:59,080 --> 00:46:01,960 Speaker 1: Marcille was finally publicly accused. 551 00:46:03,320 --> 00:46:05,839 Speaker 2: And I'm not talking about being caught in bed at 552 00:46:05,880 --> 00:46:06,520 Speaker 2: a seminary. 553 00:46:07,920 --> 00:46:17,400 Speaker 1: I mean criminal acts, cruel delivered devastating abuse, and I 554 00:46:17,600 --> 00:46:21,880 Speaker 1: couldn't take it anymore. So I left, just like that, 555 00:46:22,400 --> 00:46:28,279 Speaker 1: I walked away. But that decision, that escape, didn't come 556 00:46:28,400 --> 00:46:34,200 Speaker 1: without a cost. That's next on Secret Scandal, The Many 557 00:46:34,280 --> 00:46:35,960 Speaker 1: Secrets of Marcel Marseille. 558 00:46:42,160 --> 00:46:45,440 Speaker 2: The archival laudio clips used in this episode come from 559 00:46:45,560 --> 00:46:47,840 Speaker 2: Rome Reports, Millennium and Televisa. 560 00:46:52,320 --> 00:46:55,680 Speaker 1: Sacred Scandal The Many Secrets of Marcelle Maseille is a 561 00:46:55,719 --> 00:47:00,680 Speaker 1: production of AHA Podcast in partnership with Iheartmichael Dura Podcas Network, 562 00:47:01,040 --> 00:47:06,200 Speaker 1: and is hosted by me Elena Sada, written by Menissa Hendrix, 563 00:47:06,400 --> 00:47:10,520 Speaker 1: and alvalocez Pedes. Produced by alvaloce Pedes and ROBERTA Garza. 564 00:47:10,960 --> 00:47:15,480 Speaker 1: Research and reporting by Robert Tagarza. Edited by Jasmine Rometo 565 00:47:15,640 --> 00:47:19,520 Speaker 1: with the help of Carmen Graterol. Fact checking by Annabella Tovar, 566 00:47:20,160 --> 00:47:23,320 Speaker 1: the vocal coach for me Elene sada is Ina Tapia. 567 00:47:24,040 --> 00:47:28,359 Speaker 1: Executive producers at A Her podcast are Carmen Gratterol, Isaac Lee, 568 00:47:28,640 --> 00:47:29,360 Speaker 1: and j H. 569 00:47:29,520 --> 00:47:29,759 Speaker 2: Carr. 570 00:47:30,560 --> 00:47:34,520 Speaker 1: Mixing and sound designed by Patrick and Jones. Original music 571 00:47:34,719 --> 00:47:38,799 Speaker 1: by Darko and I Am based on Patrick Hart's original composition. 572 00:47:39,680 --> 00:47:43,920 Speaker 1: Executive producers that I heard are Leo Gomez and Arlene Santana. 573 00:47:44,440 --> 00:47:49,840 Speaker 1: Alexis Cardosa also serves as producer. Sircars Scandal was created 574 00:47:49,920 --> 00:47:52,720 Speaker 1: by Melanie Bartley and Paula Varos