"Later, I'm taken to the priest's room for coffee. While I'm having coffee sitting on the cot, the only place in the room to sit, he comes and embraces me hard, almost suffocating me. When I struggle to escape from his clutches, he squeezes my breasts and asks me to show them to him. 'Have you seen a man?' Stunned, I shake my head 'no'. In no time, he undresses himself."
Sister Jesme in her book Amen: The Autobiography of a Nun
***
"The convents and nunneries are being converted into brothels. The priests have sex with the nuns at night in these convents. Because of these acts, the chastity of the priests and nuns has come under suspicion. Their love for God has shrunk...some of the clergy protect their chastity by watching pornography and reading pornographic material. They lose themselves in this habit. These books and DVDs are kept in secret places and can't be found easily."
Father Shibu Kalamparambil in his memoir Oru Vaidikante Hrudayamitha (The Heart of a Priest)
***
"The cry of a baby came from the bathroom of one of the inner rooms along with the sobs of a woman. We used our might to force open the bathroom door and what we saw would break anyone's heart. A nun who had given birth to a child was pushing the head of the baby into the closet. The bathroom was filled with blood. The legs of the child, which were sticking out of the closet, were kicking for life."
Sister Mary Chandy in her autobiography Nanma Niranjavale Swasthi(Peace to the One filled with Grace)
***
On the gentle slopes of Pulpally, Wayanad, where the Naxal movement once sent terror into the hearts of the land-owning gentry, a lone ex-nun, Sister Mary Chandy, is raising the hackles of the Catholic church. Her autobiography, Nanma Niranjavale Swasthi, a no-holds-barred account of her life in the convent, is littered with pregnant nuns and wayward priests. The 67-year-old Sister's memoirs comes a good 14 years after she walked out of the congregation of the Daughters of Presentation of Mary in Chevayur, Kozhikode, in north Kerala. The Church was quick to proclaim that Sister Mary was never a nun in any of their convents and asked the laity in Wayanad not to associate with her.
So what happened after she saw the nun trying to kill her newborn baby in a convent in Mananthavady in Wayanad, as she has described in autobiography? "After I broke open the door with the help of another nun, I grabbed the child and held it to my chest. I thought I was doing the right thing but the sisters turned against me. I want to know why. In a previous incident, when I hit a priest on his head with a stool when he tried to grab me, the nuns sympathised with the priest. From then on, I was watched carefully." After 40 years, Sister Mary fled the convent life.
|
Tell-all memoirs are not new in Kerala, nor are church scandals. The Sister Abhaya murder case (1992) has still not seen closure and in the last five years there have been three other cases of alleged nun 'suicides'. But a nun coming out, writing an autobiography, warts and all, was a first even for Kerala. Sister Jesme's autobiography three years ago caused quite a stir and embarrassed the church no end. Following close behind was Father Shibu Kalamparambil's effort in 2010, which described in excruciating detail the depraved lives that many priests and nuns led. And now comes Sister Mary Chandy's memoir, about nuns who got pregnant by priests and aborted foetuses and other such horror stories.
Noted writer and feminist Sara Joseph, whose novel Othappu incidentally explores the life of a nun who leaves the convent, says, "Most of the nuns and priests suffer in silence for suffering is a quality that they are conditioned to accept as a virtue. What you see here is the expression of the individual's conflict with the establishment. They did not have the courage till now to take on the establishment but now they are openly questioning it." Joseph Pullikunnel, editor ofHosanna and director of the Indian Institute of Christian Studies, says he hasn't heard anything like this against the Catholic church, in such an open manner, ever before. "Perhaps the church was 'whitewashing' itself," he says hesitantly.
Ex-MP and commentator Dr Sebastian Paul is a bit more unabashed about the sociological implications of these revelations: "These autobiographies have become bestsellers but the allegations they make have not been publicly debated. So there is not much impact on the organisation. The Catholic Church is a highly centralised organisation and there is very little criticism happening within."
So will a soon-to-be-released film, aptly titled Father, Son and Holy Ghost, on the hardships and dilemmas faced by nuns, put things in perspective? "The Church is traditionally patriarchal. I have explored the lives of two nuns in a nunnery in my film and have touched on various aspects, including homosexuality and abortion," says director T. Deepesh.
That doesn't sound like things are going to get better. Father Paul Thelakat, spokesperson of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, says the fathers and nuns who have left the order and are writing books now are the ones who could not cope with the spiritual life. As he puts it, "If one cannot stay celibate, it is better to get out, marry and live happily. One is called to a difficult way of life; it needs an ascetic's will to live a life of celibacy happily. It is always better to marry than to 'burn' mentally. I do not appreciate those who make a hue and cry of something they fail to live up to and then blame others for their failures. It is too naive to say, 'since I could not, nobody can'."
|
Sara Joseph too stresses the unsubstantiated clause, saying if these writers want to be taken seriously they must reveal names. "Only if they are exposed can they be questioned," she says. Take, for instance, Sister Mary's book. It takes no names nor are dates clearly mentioned. Fr Stephen Mathew, director of Neethivedi, an NGO in Wayanad, points out, "We are suspicious because they haven't revealed everything. A small minority may be behaving like this...but it is not good to generalise."
The Church's critics, though, offer a different view. They feel even if it's only a handful of priests and nuns who have spoken out, it's still a brave effort as it is unthinkable for the majority to speak against the strict order. There is both fear and subservience. Those who dare to leave this cloistered life are often not accepted by even their family and are ostracised by society. And most don't even have a place to stay.
"Judas! Fallen Angel! Mad! These are some of the epithets being hurled my way by the church," says Sister Jesme, 56, a former principal of St Mary's College, Thrissur, fully at ease in a pair of red tights and a black T-shirt, enjoying her freedom in her tiny flat in Guruvayur. "I am foisted as an example to quell dissidents within the nunneries and seminaries. They preach that I have been disowned by my family and by the Church and the same would befall anyone who dares to be another Sr Jesme." Fr Shibu says his parents were threatened by the Church. They were even told that they would not be buried in the church cemetery if they accepted him back home.
Curiously, this comes at a time when the Vatican itself is under attack. A tell-all bestseller,Sua Santita, has outed confidential personal letters between the Pope and his associates revealing many embarrassing details. Last month, the head of the Vatican bank was sacked on money-laundering charges. Many connected with the Church say the kind of depravity prevalent among the priests and nuns in Kerala and abroad is because of the arcane rules and practices. This perhaps is the time to usher in some much-needed reforms in the Catholic Church. As Dr Valson Thampu, principal of St Stephen's College, Delhi, puts out, "Every institution stands in need of continual reform. What is not reformed or renewed is headed for death. Only those who are spiritually insensitive will resist reform." So will the Church let more light into its pews or wait for another book by one of its own to rake up another scandal?
AUTHORS: MINU ITTYIPE
TAGS: CHRISTIANS - CHURCH, POPE, MISSIONARIES ETC | RELIGION-SPIRITUALITY | SEX OFFENDERS |SEXUAL HARASSMENT & MISCONDUCT | GAYS-BISEXUALS-LESBIANS AND TRANSGENDERED(GLBT) |WOMEN
SECTION: BOOKS | SOCIETY
SUBSECTION: COVER STORIES
PLACES: KERALA
Translate| ALSO IN THIS STORY |
 INTERVIEW The nun who walked out of her Kozhikode convent 14 years ago on what compelled her to leave |
 INTERVIEW The priest, whose memoirs were published in 2010, on the sexual misconduct of priests and financial irregularities |
KERALA: THE CHURCH The Little Flower convent nuns who took the church to court |
 OPINION The meek shall inherit the earth? Not if the Church has its way. |
| Post a Comment | |
| You are not logged in, please log in or register | |
If you wish your letter to be considered for publication in the print magazine, we request you to use a proper name, with full postal address - you could still maintain your anonymity, but please desist from using unpublishable sobriquets and handles | |
| 52/D-85 JUL 18, 2012 03:37 PM | Dear Bownpalle VG Rao...mate. The Holy Quran describes Prophet Jesus(pbuh) as the 'soul of Allah'. Uneducated? Mate, Prophet Mohammed (pbuh) was also uneducated and the book which he brought says this " And we created this universe with a bang and by sending it asunder' 'And we created every living thing from water' . Tell me which Prophet went to school? In Islam we 'believe' that the Book which was sent on Prophet Jesus (pbuh) was hidden and when he comes back for the seond time as described by Prophet Mohammed (pbuh) 'my brother Jesus will descend on a dome of a mosque in Damascus (syria) with his two hands spread over 2 angels and water dripping from his head, people will put up ladder to bring him down, he will be asked to lead prayers (namaz), he will live on this earth for 40 years, will marry and will have childrens and will establish a just rule, when he will die, he will be buried next to me in Madina'" To this day, next to the grave of Prophet Mohammed (pbuh) there is a space left for the great Messiah. So please dont say that prophets are uneducated, cos they get their knowledge directly from the creator and not from some silly school or colleges. |
51/D-83 JUL 18, 2012 03:27 PM | While on flight from Fort Lauderdale to SFO way back in 1999 and that was my first and the last trip to US, I was sitting next to a black American holding a bible, I asked her if she has read it fully she said no, then I said to her do you there as so many contradictions in Bible and there as so many of different versions, some have 63 chapters others have 69 or so. She said yes. Then I said to her 'all your forefathers were muslims who was captured and brought to America as slaves, then their kids were stolen and raised by the Churches. so in fact you all are childrens of those poor muslim 'captive forefathers' whose childrens were stolen and later when they grew up whey had no idea who their forefathers were or what their religion was, to which she replied, :"yes I heard about that and we even made a movie ''''Back to the roots'. Moral of the story is that, in Christianity you can sin as much as you like as jesus will forgive you, and thats how they indulge in paedophilism and rapery while blaming Islam for anything which is not there. |
50/D-79 JUL 18, 2012 03:15 PM | Geez..my friends, I just pointed out the corruption in the bible which even ex 'christian ministers' 'ex priests' did so, why blame me along dudes! Even Time magazine carried out in late 60 or 70 'Crime Rise In Bible Awakened America' as after the urge to read Bible advocacy there was sudden spurt in violence all over America...to all other friends who asked if Islam is bestest religion in the world? Why bother to ask me, just watch YouTube of Lady Hazelton on Prophet Muhammed and about Quran, she is a Jewish lady who has done extensive research on Judaism, Christianity and Islam, better listen to her for the answers rather from my mouth. As far as I know there is no such 'immoral stories' in any of the 'Puranas' 'vedas' or even in Quran or 'Judaism'. You can also watch :"How Bible led me to Islam' By a former "Christian Youth Minister' in USA. on YouTube. Another thing dudes, I respect Sanathan Dharma's teaching more than the so called Christianity which was founded by Paul, Thomas etc, Why? Cos of moral and family values it imbibes on its followers which you see in common Hindus. Well I dont live in glass houses, there is no such verse in Quran or anything in any of the Hadiths, rather Islam asked its followers to live in this world but not to indulge in 'illegal' activities, thats why if you have so much 'sexual desire' than you "'marry in 2, 3 or 4 provided you do justice, otherwise marry only one'". |
49/D-66 JUL 18, 2012 12:26 PM | @@ Irfan Sabri Even to understand Bible you need Vedanta. I do not believe that Adam was running behind Eve seeing her round buttocks , after eating an apple. The tree is probably upside down , with a symbolic meaning. The attraction of life itself ( or the illusion of it ) is apple, and reaching at the roots is understanding the meaning of life.
|
48/D-63 JUL 18, 2012 11:40 AM | Talking about religion – my own musings I am not a religious person. In fact I never go to church on time for Sunday mass. But I know in my heart ( and it is my personal belief) that I first and foremost wholeheartedly belong to my Lord and then I belong to church. If church is going wrong then I will not take its side but I should chip in to reform it. This is my personal opinion that we have collectively failed the religions (or messed it up, whatever) and human being is not evolved and mature enough to understand the basic nature of religion. It is better that we do away with the religion and follow the concept humanity and have scientific approach in our daily life. What is religion? When I visited Igatpuri (Maharashtra) to do vipassanna, one Goenka Guruji taught us that "be good and do good to others, no harm to others" it is as simple as that. Nature will reward us for this. |
PERMALINK
LIKE (1)
DISLIKE (3)
REPORT ABUSE
