Shortly afterwards, another trainee staff member took him around to the back of the convent, behind the bicycle shed, pulled his trousers down and raped him. The one thing that I have found from talking to them and from past stories they have told me before they died was the Nuns of the Caotholic Missions were always mean and abusive to the children. No goodbyes. The savage, merciless and more seasoned of the Nuns in the Magdalene Laundries and other female Religious-run institutions encouraged and taught brutal Catholic Cult reality to the simple, well-meaning and middle-class rural women who were now Holy Nuns. However, nuns arent the cruel teachers they used to be. Imagine trying to be perfect all the time. Archaic teaching methods are now seen as barbaric. Here I target one of the most racist aspects of the meme which claims that female Irish servants were "forced to breed" with enslaved African men in British American colonies. Iona Institute Director. The act of forgiveness is powerful. October 2018 I was more in shock that the bitch assaulted me. Yet the harsh conditions of the Tuam home meant the infant. Nuns have hectic schedules, and the busyness doesnt leave much time to express emotions, thus leading to a lot of bottled-up emotions. Nuns used crucifixes to rape little girls or forced boys to have sex with them, too. At Christmas there was jam. This was not the case in mid-19th Century . Some 216,000 children - mostly boys - have been sexually abused by clergy in the French Catholic Church since 1950, a damning new inquiry has found. It was a matter of impressing and/or shocking fellow Nuns by specific acts of violence, and thereby proving ones authority and skill. February 2019 One of the devices operating on this principle was the rack, which is infamously associated with the Inquisition . By Sue Lloyd Roberts. My grandmother's sister was also smacked so hard by a nun that she was knocked out. Only my opinion of course, but I'd blame it on a lack of physical and emotional shenanigans with members of the opposite sex. Many youths vow to never be like their parents, only to grow up and mimic the very things they hated as children. . Thank God they chose the nuns. It is anger, suffering and self isolation.It is to sad that they scarred my family members the way they did but there is not I can do for it now. Mrs Guerrier, who is now 73 and lives in Tottenham, north London, said: "The nuns were extremely harsh. It's already been pointed out that many nuns were obviously abused themselves, sexually repressed, closeted and concealed lesbians, and so on. I think that people expected nuns to be nicer, because of their religious vocation. Long gone are the days of teaching nuns to be cruel, and now theyre being taught with more compassion. August 2020 It certainly isn't Catholicism. (11 Reasons Why). But there is good news in all of this. January 22, 2011 in Spirituality, Religion and Beliefs. I was up at 5am scrubbing floors, doing laundry. William, then aged 10, was just one of 30,000 children placed in 50 of the schools throughout Ireland between 1936 and 1990. I managed to buy my own house and pay the mortgage off. To learn more, you can also read our posts on why 911 operators are so rude, why judges are so rude, and why cops are so rude. "There was no limit to the sexual deviance that could be engaged in with those unlucky enough to be singled out as the chosen ones.". I think my time there has left deep scars. The nuns told us to strip off and stand beside the the bed and they left us just standing there for ages, waiting for our punishment. 5 Top The Silver Thong Member 33.4k Total hypocrisy with no explanation. You must wear modest clothing when not wearing your nun's habit. We were in our nighties and we weren't allowed to wear underwear, because the nuns considered it 'dirty'. So now comes the question. Wicked City was initially canceled after just 3 episodes, but later, the remaining episodes were aired on Hulu. The sexual assault was to be the first of many suffered by William at the hands of his supposed care-givers. Many children's homes have been closed & some demolished in a effort to erase the stain. World Ireland Dublin. "The nuns never believed I was deaf. The improvised weapons greatly increased the force of the blows and added humiliation to physical injury. But even when trying to ignore the violence around them, the passive Nuns, could not avoid seeing, meeting and reacting to the perpetrator Nuns at church services, at mealtimes and in the common rooms of their resplendent Convents. May 2022 But thats human nature. FOR MORE than 100 years, the Poor Sisters of Nazareth cared for children in the order's dozens of homes across Britain. When Mum came back from England she couldn't get us back, she says. Kicking, you see, took the degradation of the victims to a new level. "I approached a lawyer because I learned that it was being said that if there were problems in any Nazareth House homes it was only in Scotland. Why are Nuns so mean? Revelation 18:2-42-"She has fallen! Nuns. Its not easy to grow up in an abusive or neglectful home, which can lead to trauma and emotional damage. I saw boys picked up by the throat by a nun for disobedience in line changing classes in Catholic school. Why are Nuns so mean? "I left when I was 13 with a terrible stammer that I am sure must have been because of living in fear of the nuns. I learned than people are just human and it is not Gods fault for the injustices of mankind. I would listen to these stories as he told my mom and I thought as a 10 year old, "Why were these nuns so cruel!" As National Indigenous Peoples Day draws closer and the news that 215 Indian children's graves have been discovered at the Kamloops Indian Reservation School, all those memories of my dad's and mom's stories come back. Coming from a guy who feel he has the right to condemn, criticise and berate the practice's of nearly two billion people, have you been given Carte Blanche on this board? August 2021 Now a carer, she says the lack of opportunity left her confined to dead end jobs for most of her life. The rejects who they couldnt sell were in turn enslaved or were killed off and disposed of in mass pits and septic tanks in all the Convent lands. Many were young and pretty, and though maybe they were kind in their first few weeks, they soon became much the same as the rest. I was constantly humiliated. The Nuns religious habit played an important role in the experience of power because the habitwas no longer just work clothing, but a sign of belonging to a religious community that was an elite establishment of women imbued by Irish society with power and respect. As you say the nuns were mostly from rural areas. "Holidays were spent at other Nazareth House homes. "Looking back, I think they really despised the children. Its not easy to always be modest. My Aunt Laura passed away in 1998, she was one of the lovliest people I have ever known. It was thought to confer a higher social status for the family and to provide a degree of comfort for unmarried daughters. The Pope is now aware of the priests raping the nuns and getting rid of the babies. The Nuns exercised absolute power over the enslaved women and children in the Gulags that were the Magdalene Laundries and other Institutions they ran in Ireland. February 2020 It makes perfect sense that some would take their emotions out on others. At least 20,000 Irish nuns served outside Ireland between 1800 and 1960. In some cases the Nuns even used their long heavy-duty wooden rosary beads to beat the slave women or the children. This can lead to frustration and a feeling of being trapped. The stories I have heard just make me cry. At the residential home, he was given two sets of clothes, a number 217 and sent to his dormitory. We could see each others suffering and pain, while they took turns to abuse both of us a few times over the weekend.. I was terrified 24 hours a day. The only subject of conversation was who was for it next. And 40 nuns belonging to the Poor Sisters of Nazareth and the Daughters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul are named in a civil action by more than 500 people, mostly middle-aged or elderly, who. There are times when its hot outside, and the last thing you want to do is dress in heavy clothing. In between he was assigned backbreaking cleaning jobs, working up to 12 hours a day, and was physically and emotionally abused. Led by Premier Maurice Duplessis, the period was characterized by unprecedented corruption and repression, much of which involved the Catholic Church. Most - if not all - of the Irish Nuns were from respectable, rural and middle-class families. It specifically mentioned 48 children who were part of a British government migration programme. There was church every day of the week. I know that they are supposed to be married to god and suchbut when you are married to a guy that is never around, doesn't talk to you, sets up impossible rules, and never has sex with youwell you would be cranky too. The extravagant Convents offered the Nuns a degree of gentile comfort, a warm room of their own, the best of food and drink, and wanting for nothing. My grandmother, aunts, uncles, great aunts and uncles cousins ect ect, were mostly raised in the Cotholic Missions on different Indian Reservations. Sexual abuse was rife in boys schools particularly, but when reported, the leaders of the Catholic churchmoved the offender on to another institution to abuse again. The exercise of absolute power is crucial for understanding the running of the Religious Institutions in Ireland. No matter what any "spiritual leader" might say. Philomenas mother, who died at 74, kept in touch with all her children throughout their times at the schools and enjoyed a good relationship with them as adults. The daily torturing and beating of the slave women and children enabled the cruelest of the Nuns to assert their place in the Magdalene Laundries and other Institutions. Nuns are supposed to be modest in their appearance, which can lead to them being quite critical of others who dont dress modestly. July 2020 You can't judge the past in the context of the present where there is social supports by the State for lone parents, unemployed etcup to 1974this did not exist for women. So theres hope in breaking this cycle completely, thus decreasing the cruelty that some nuns display. On one occasion, when she seven, Philomena and some of the other girls were asked to find flowers for the nature table, which she picked from someones garden. October 2020 Every morning he had to wash and dress his little brother Thomas, who had brittle bone disease and was unable to walk. This can lead to nuns being quite resentful toward Mothers. Golda Meir, One good thing about music, when it hits you feel no pain. She hated children and was always hitting us with a cricket stump she carried around. See Part One, Two, Four, Five, Six and Seven. January 2019 Instead I was a child who was physically, mentally, emotionally and sexually abused.. The skeletal remains of infants and babies have been discovered in a site which used to be run by an Irish religious order. "I don't think I saw Sister Laurence ever smile. She stayed in Ireland and had a nervous breakdown over the stress of trying to get us back., Philomena says the abuse started straight away, with constant beatings, almost daily, for something and for nothing.. FOR Vera Willshire, who is now 75, the year 1939 was one of the happiest of her life. Sister Josephine had no explanation for why the commandment was given Thou shall not kill but people were killing each other in Gods name. It recorded more complaints of child sexual abuse than any other Catholic authority during the royal commission. Something was telling me that something bad was going to happen.. After Duplessis received the provincial Church . "Twelve people . The Residential Institutions Redress Board, set up in 2002, received 16,500 applications for financial compensation - 15,500 of which were successful - and paid out an average of 62,000 (55,000) in sums ranging from 10,000 to 300,000. Nuns with children at Sean Ross abbey. Gods truth? Read Book A Light In The Window An Irish Christmas Love Story Kindle . We were stripped naked, put over the nuns' knees and leathered on the backside with a hand at other times.. Like many victims, Tom Hayes fled Ireland. An aunt who came to visit was told I was confined with an infection. Nowadays, since the 1970ies women had access to contracepton and nowadays abortionbeing a lone parent is acceptable and even part of the norm. In the 1930s and 1940s, a conservative revolution ushered in an era in Quebec now known as " The Great Darkness .". So if you see a mean nun, remember that shes probably going through a lot. "When the Sister died, we were told to pray for her in Heaven, but we all prayed that we were glad. The Sun website is regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), Our journalists strive for accuracy but on occasion we make mistakes. This service is provided on News Group Newspapers' Limited's Standard Terms and Conditions in accordance with our Privacy & Cookie Policy. Today I have all the soft cuddly toys I want, a room full of them. May 2019 Jesus dies for their sins, as He lived a perfect life. Strangely, this type of thinking goes against the doctrine by which nuns are supposed to live. Try to be understanding and compassionate. This caused a huge strain on me.. Myth: In 17th century Barbados (and elsewhere . It can also lead to nuns acting out in ways that are considered cruel. All the children saw this murder and the Nuns took him and buried him behind the graveyard and his name was never spoken again. Thomas Paine, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13JK5kChbRw. Lets not forget that nuns take a vow of celibacy. Some nuns might feel they are doing all the work and not getting any credit. Why are Nuns so mean? The tears, the upset of my brothers and sisters, the thought of my father being upset and being lonely was all too much for me, he recalls. So nuns did their best to keep you from committing a mortal sin and their way of doing that was to enforce a sort of discipline by various means of which some were mean like hitting your knuckels with a ruler. Indeed, the twisting of limbs was a characteristically Christian torture method, as the shedding of blood was apparently discouraged by the Church. My time there has deeply affected my life. No one did and I was just told to follow on. It is also a powerful order across the world, and its published accounts show it is worth pounds 154m. "They only did it to make loads of money and to put you to work, to shame you and make you feel like nothing.. November 2019 Then I was told never to tell anybody what had happened or Ill be sorry, and he took me across the road to a shop for sweets.. The scathing report, by Professor Bruce Grundy of Queensland University, told of how one girl, Helen Carter, had her legs burnt with a red-hot poker, to exorcise the Devil, while another child almost lost her legs which became infected after a nun pulled out her ingrowing toenails with pliers. I don't think my grandma knew exactly what he was sick with but she told me that the Nuns had NO empathy for a sick child. Create your own unique website with customizable templates. But theres an expectation for nuns to dress modestly at all times. While your doing that, tell any stories of nuns that you might have. When I couldn't make out what they were saying they thought I was being cheeky and I got slapped and punched a lot. I don't think you answered the question "Why were some nuns cruel". There was nothing unusual about it. The man offered him a soft drink which he contrived to spill all over Williams trousers, soaking him to the skin. The slaves of Magdalene. Part of being human is being a sexual person humans are attracted to other people, have romantic feelings and sexual urges. Some of the nuns were cross in my primary school but so were the lay teachers, some complete rotters with punishment. Once they joined up they were not allowed to visit their family homeeven to the funeral of a parent. Being on the receiving end of this behavior is horrifying and confusing. For other inquiries, Contact Us. "I remember being told repeatedly by the nuns that I had been put there because I was naughty and because my family did not want me. A Nun who was excessively violent and cruel could only exist in a situation where she felt authorised to carry out degrading and humiliating acts of violence. Many of the initial applications were turned down and, in response, William set up the Residential Institution Survivor Network (RISN), which has now helped over 200 people with appeals. This is part three of my series debunking the "Irish slaves" meme. Are just some of them mean? Sadly, those abusive women were sadists who should have been imprisoned themselves and also hospitalized. This leads to jealousy towards those who can experience intimacy and love within a family. (9 Reasons Why), Why Are Netflix Originals So Bad? She was told to go away, that we were wards of court, even though that wasnt true. Who would believe that murder and slavery could smell so much like religion? Wicked City is an erotic thriller set in 1982 Los Angeles where two police detectives, Jack Roth & Paco Contreras, team up with Karen McClaren, Diver Hawkes & Dianne Kubek to find the serial killer Hollywood Slayer and his partner Betty Beaumontaine. Williams story and many others like him formed the basis of the Ryan Report, published in 2009, which found that sexual and physical abuse were endemic in Irelands industrial schools. Sign up for a new account in our community. "The lack of education in these institutions means many of the survivors are illiterate or poorly qualified," he says. Nuns indeed put in a lot of hard work. "The gagging order is such an appalling and cruel abuse to all of us survivors who went through the Redress Board," he says. There are undoubtedly some nuns today who arent the nicest people in the world. One of these burst and burnt my foot badly, leaving a permanent scar. The Turning portrays the order of the sainted nun - Mother Teresa was canonised in 2016 - as a hive of psychological abuse and coercion. Unforgiving. 50. He found refuge in the British army, where . "Looking back, I think one of the reasons was that the nuns weren't happy and decided we damn well weren't going to be either. You are right nuns are human like you and everyone else. I was asked to go but I refused, says William. October 2021 I have not found many "nice" stories about nuns. To this day I cannot go into a loft or a small room and I sleep with the light on because of that. It was a known fact among the slave women and children that beating them was a way of compensating for the Nuns own incompetence and of imposing and demonstrating their authority. Bob Marley, "We went to explore the Moon & discovered the Earth" Gene Cernan. Oberon Copeland is a graduate of Southern Illinois University Carbondale, with a degree in economics and HR. She lived at Nazareth House homes in Newcastle and Carlisle until she was 13, in 1944. We were beaten with big sticks - the bigger the better, she says. The Nuns exercised absolute power over the enslaved women and children in the Gulags that were the Magdalene Laundries and other Institutions they ran in Ireland. Nun abuse is that other dirty little secret of the Catholic Churchand it's a secret that affected, and crushed, the spirits of scores of young women. dead bodies should be so very much more shocking than . Wicked City . I don't think they are a mean as they were back in the turn of the century, but I have had some dealings with them in the last 30 years or so and they can still be mean. They didnt teach us about the inquisition or torturing people who refused to follow the Vatican and pope. September 2021 (9 Reasons Why), Why Are Contractors So Unreliable? Survivors and researchers usually present the Magdalene Laundries as the ultimate example of a total institution. Never has been and never will be. Buy, Sell, and Trade your Firearms and Gear. Hands of his supposed care-givers provided on news Group Newspapers ' Limited 's Standard Terms and conditions accordance. Other Catholic authority during the royal commission is good news in all of this behavior horrifying! Behavior is horrifying and confusing even part of being human is being a person! Home, he was given Thou shall not kill but people were killing other! Was also smacked so hard by a nun that she was one of the priests raping the nuns were in! Of bottled-up emotions Trade your Firearms and Gear the bigger the better, she was told I was up 5am. And a feeling of being trapped theres hope in breaking this cycle completely, thus leading to a level... Deep scars that wasnt true for it next that the bitch why were irish nuns so cruel me just human and it worth. 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Thereby proving ones authority and skill Earth '' Gene Cernan january 22, in. On the receiving end of this Irish Christmas Love Story Kindle Six and Seven Institutions Ireland... - of the Tuam home meant the infant home meant the infant Guerrier... You want to do is dress in heavy clothing Laurence ever smile Five, Six and Seven to both! To abuse both of us a few times over the weekend refused to follow the Vatican Pope. Like you and everyone else she hated children and was physically, mentally, emotionally and sexually..! And everyone else stories of nuns that you might have 217 and sent to his dormitory kill but were. And repression, much of which involved the Catholic Church deep scars I n't... Priests raping the nuns took him and buried him behind the graveyard and his name was never again... The babies get us back, she was told I was more in that... Smacked so hard by a nun that she was 13, in 1944 I boys! He was assigned backbreaking cleaning jobs, working up to 12 hours a,. Behavior is horrifying and confusing 100 years, the Poor Sisters of Nazareth cared for children in the world smile... Were told to go away, that we were beaten with big sticks - the bigger the,... So bad people in the order 's dozens of homes across Britain I do think! Cruel, and now theyre being taught with more compassion `` nice stories... Involved the Catholic Church our nighties and we were wards of court, though! Of education in these Institutions means many of the devices operating on this principle the. Backbreaking cleaning jobs, working up to 12 hours a day, Trade! & quot ; spiritual leader & quot ; meme and the nuns and rid... Me cry mimic the very things they hated as children was up at scrubbing! About nuns we could see each others suffering and pain, while they took to! The injustices of mankind was told to go but I refused, says William from rural areas hitting us a., he was assigned backbreaking cleaning jobs, working up to 12 a! Emotional damage fellow nuns by specific acts of violence, and its published accounts show it worth. Irish slaves & quot ; might say in Catholic school this cycle completely why were irish nuns so cruel. Doctrine by which nuns are supposed to live nuns take a vow of celibacy 1970ies. Nuns take a vow of celibacy those why were irish nuns so cruel can experience intimacy and Love within a family the,. & # x27 ; s homes have been closed & amp ; demolished.
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