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SEASON 3: Nation of Saints

In 1980, one man held together a fragile peace in the tiny nation of El Salvador: Archbishop Oscar Romero. When he is brutally and publicly assassinated on the pulpit, his murder starts a war that would leave 75,000 dead, and a million more displaced around the globe. Sacred Scandal season 3, Nation of Saints, follows host Jasmine Romero as she uncovers the holy war that followed the Archbishop's death, and led to an unsolved murder in her own family.

 

SEASON 2: La Luz del Mundo

Sacred Scandal, named one of Podtrac’s Best New Podcasts of 2022, embarks on its second season, focusing on Mexico-based megachurch La Luz del Mundo (Light of the World). It tells the story of Naasón Joaquín García, a self-proclaimed apostle, who is currently behind bars after pleading guilty in June 2022 of sexually abusing girls from his congregation. Naasón is currently serving a nearly 17-year sentence, but maintains his innocence.

Host and investigative journalist Roberta Garza explores Naasón's control over a multitude of devotees, some of whom now describe their experiences in the church as "pure evil." In this true-crime series, survivors share stories about this powerful religious leader and the alleged sexual abuse that followed, many relating to minors.

 

SEASON 1:

Two decades ago on a calm, dark Miami night, a nun was stabbed nearly 100 times on the grounds of a prestigious private academy and monastery, by student Mykhaylo Kofel. As investigators started asking questions around this Byzantine Catholic School and the gruesome murder, they found more than just her killer. In a search for answers that stretches into some of the most remote villages of Eastern Europe, they uncovered allegations of sexual abuse, secret letters to the Vatican and other mysteries of faith. Sacred Scandal unravels the fuller picture that came to light in the wake of this crime. Led by a former student, told by those who lived through the aftermath, and Kofel himself, the show pieces together a complicated narrative that, twenty years later, still has those closest to it questioning what they truly believe… including a man who’s spent half his life in prison for the crime: “It’s so unbelievable. It definitely wasn’t me. I’m not a killer. No way. That’s not me.” — Mykhaylo Kofel, 2021

Sacred Scandal

To kick off Marketplace’s season premiere, we’re sharing a conversation with one of our favorite writers, Hanif Abdurraqib. He joins Reema for a wide-ranging discussion about the moral judgments often made regarding people’s financial circumstances, notions of success and legacy, and what it means to be “good” versus “bad” in an unequal world. Hanif also opens up about one of the most challenging financial moments of his life and his commitment to giving away a significant portion of his income.
Hanif is an award-winning poet, cultural critic, and author from Columbus, Ohio. He’s written six books, several of which are bestsellers, including his most recent, “There’s Always This Year.” His work spans sports, pop culture, and politics, often focusing on issues of race and class, while also exploring themes of grief, beauty, and love. Hanif has received a MacArthur Foundation “genius grant” and was a finalist for the National Book Award, among other accolades.

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Introducing Marketplace: Hanif Abdurraqib on what it means to “make it”

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Introducing: Sacred Scandal

At a monastery in Miami, a nun is found dead in her room just before Sunday Mass. With more than 90 stab wounds, the search for her brutal killer begins.

Hosted by Paula Barros and Melanie Bartley 

 

A Production of EXILE Content Studio

 
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A Murder at Holy Cross

Twenty years before the murder at Holy Cross Academy, two struggling priests find one another in South Florida. As they build out their utopia, some are awed by their vision, while others start to question their methods.

Hosted by Paula Barros and Melanie Bartley 

 

A Production of EXILE Content Studio

 
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The School on Sunset

As detectives start to narrow in on the murder suspect, an unexpected guest arrives at the homicide office. And startling allegations against the monastery change the course of the investigation.

Hosted by Paula Barros and Melanie Bartley 

 

A Production of EXILE Content Studio

 
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The Confessional

In the mid-1990s, a devoutly religious Ukrainian teenager is offered the chance to escape a violent household, for a life-changing opportunity at a Florida monastery. But swapping the hardships of his rural mountain village, for the promise of a better future in America, ends up far worse than his expectations.

Wanna get in touch? Email us at hello@sacredscandalpodcast.com or follow us on Instagram @SacredScandal.

Hosted by Paula Barros and Melanie Bartley 

 

A Production of EXILE Content Studio

 
 Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Boy from Verkhovyna-Bystra pt. 1

Now in Miami, the monastic candidates of Holy Cross Academy start to realise that life there isn’t exactly what the priests promised. And one of those monks reveals how a dark secret kept inside the monastery put him on a path to prison.

Wanna get in touch? Email us at hello@sacredscandalpodcast.com or follow us on Instagram @SacredScandal.

Hosted by Paula Barros and Melanie Bartley

 

A Production of EXILE Content Studio

 
 Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Boy from Verkhovyna-Bystra pt. 2

Mykhaylo Kofel’s accusations against the priests of Holy Cross Academy turned what appeared to be an open-and-shut murder case on it’s head. Those allegations would send both the prosecution and defence teams halfway around the world looking for the truth, and put the monastery on high alert.

Hosted by Paula Barros and Melanie Bartley

 

A Production of EXILE Content Studio

Wanna get in touch? Email us at hello@sacredscandalpodcast.com or follow us on Instagram @SacredScandal.

 
 Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A New Investigation

After the priests of Holy Cross Academy refused to cooperate with the murder and sexual abuse investigations, lawyers started to dig into the school’s past on their own. What they found was that years before Sister Michelle’s death, another investigation into Holy Cross already started — and it stretched all the way to the very top of the Catholic Church. 

Wanna get in touch? Email us at hello@sacredscandalpodcast.com or follow us on Instagram @SacredScandal.

 
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The House of Mirrors

Nearly four years after the murder of Sister Michelle Lewis, Mykhaylo Kofel’s fate is finally decided. And all of the investigations take their toll on Holy Cross Academy, but not before the priests find a new place to call home.

Wanna get in touch? Email us at hello@sacredscandalpodcast.com or follow us on Instagram @SacredScandal.

 
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The Time of Troubles

An extended interview with writer and professor Roberto Lovato, whose book “Unforgetting: A Memoir of Family, Migration, Gangs, and Revolution in the Americas” helped inspire the series. 

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The Power of Telling Our Own Stories with Roberto Lovato

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