(ZENIT News / Criciuma, 08.23.2025).- A troubling case in southern Brazil has drawn attention to the vulnerability of clergy in the digital age, after a woman admitted to a campaign of online harassment against a Catholic priest in the Diocese of Criciúma, Santa Catarina.
The accused, a resident of the nearby coastal city of Imbituba, confessed to creating and circulating falsified material designed to damage the priest’s reputation. Among the tactics she acknowledged were manipulated screenshots, fabricated voice recordings, and the creation of a false WhatsApp account used to impersonate the clergyman in communications with his family. She also admitted to inventing stories of alleged romantic encounters, all of which the priest had consistently rejected as incompatible with his vocation and celibacy.
As part of a court-mediated settlement, the woman agreed to pay 40,000 reais (about \$7,000 USD) in damages to the Diocese of Criciúma. She will also be bound by strict restraining orders: she cannot attend Masses or diocesan events where the priest is present, nor may she use his name, likeness, or voice in any context. Breaching the agreement could trigger fines equivalent to 20 times the national minimum wage.
Police investigators reported that the harassment escalated in July and persisted until August 4, despite repeated warnings. The case began, according to testimony, after the woman sought spiritual guidance at the Sanctuary of Nova Veneza and attempted to initiate a personal relationship with the priest. When he refused, citing the obligations of his ministry, she launched the defamatory campaign that lasted several months.
Civil authorities confiscated three mobile phones during the investigation, uncovering evidence that supported the priest’s claims of harassment. Allegations of financial misconduct raised by the woman were investigated but ultimately dismissed as unfounded.
The incident highlights the growing challenge for Church leaders navigating ministry in an era where boundaries between private and public life are blurred by digital platforms. For priests, who often serve as spiritual and community figures in small towns, exposure to online defamation can have lasting consequences, even when proven false.
The Diocese of Criciúma, while welcoming the resolution of the case, has underscored the need to protect clergy from similar situations and to ensure that pastoral encounters remain safe spaces for those seeking spiritual support.
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