Carmelite nuns in Indy respond to the child sex abuse cases

April 4, 2002 4:37 AM

Carmelite nuns in Indy respond to the child sex abuse cases currently plaguing the Church. (from NPR) Great to see the perspective of the other half of the Holy Orders - these nuns are ballsy and discard the notion of the (Roman Catholic) Church as a superpower. The dedication of nuns always blows my mind - and breaks the mean-ol'-bitch stereotypes that linger in my head... ...meanwhile the Archdiocese of New York gives a D. A. abuse accusation records from the past 30 years (from NYTimes - requires login, etc.)
posted by ao4047 (9 comments total)

A "carmelite nun" sounds like a pretty good Easter candy. Pick up a box of marshmallow peeps, a few chocolate bunnies, and a dozen carmelite nuns.
posted by pracowity at 4:44 AM on April 4, 2002

This article from the Atlantic Monthly was gave me a new perspective on nuns. If you're interested, you might want to print it out, it's a bit long to read on a computer screen: Women of God
posted by andrewzipp at 6:08 AM on April 4, 2002

From Sister Betty's list of Some do's and don't's:

Don't equate pedophilia with homosexuality.
Do realize that pedophilia is an illness and that homosexuality and heterosexuality are nature's sexual orientations.

That strikes me as more tolerant than I ever imagined a nun would be.
posted by jennyb at 6:09 AM on April 4, 2002

Don't worry, she'll be excommunicated soon.
posted by rushmc at 8:19 AM on April 4, 2002

Not surprising. Nuns (and monks) are religious devotees, not politicians. They don't worry about threats to their authority 'cause they don't have any, in the usual sense. They can afford to be a lot more laid back, tolerant and forward thinking.
posted by Foosnark at 8:54 AM on April 4, 2002

They don't worry about threats to their authority 'cause they don't have any
Actually, thats not wholey true. Within orders, there is a hiearchy of nuns. I know this only b/c my Aunt in a nun (and i stay up at her convent once a year), and happens to be high up on this hiearchal order. So, to say there is no authority is a complete falacy. I think it is definitely true that nuns are religious, no politicians as Foosnark says, but i also don't think Priests aren't politicians, either. From talking to my nun-aunt, being "politician like" w/in the Church is greatly looked down upon. If this this whole pedophile case makes Priests be politician-like (yes, it was a huge mess-up and was not properly handled), then so be it, but they Priests religious like in just about every other aspect, just like nuns.
posted by jmd82 at 9:25 AM on April 4, 2002

jmd82, I think that there is a difference in that nuns and monks aren't as integrated into the community, so they do not have to be as aware of the day to day life within their communities. Some nuns and monks are cloistered, or take vows of silence. community Priests, have to support and involve themselves with the day to day lives of the parishioners. There are nuns who are actively involved in the community, and there have been very radical priests (Father Daniel and Mathew Berrigan from Cornell), but chances are that your local parish priest, who has to represent God to the community is not going to take subversive steps to undermine the Church's current (perhaps false, or questionable ) teachings.
ps. my aunt was a nun too
posted by goneill at 10:03 AM on April 4, 2002

goneill: I think that there is a difference in that nuns and monks aren't as integrated into the community
This is untrue, most nuns I know (well knew I'm lapsed), are intimately involved with the local community. They teach, assist the priests, and sometimes leave and have kids(that would be me and my brothers)... When I think of nuns, I don't think of cloistered nuns, I think more along the Mother Teresa type nun, actively involved in communities.
posted by patrickje at 11:04 AM on April 4, 2002

With all the abuse suits going on now, I thought maybe I'd hop on the bandwagon and sue the nuns from my early years for physical and psycholigical abuse. Though they never touched my willy, the trauma of repeated public flogging, acknowledged by every former Catholic school attendee, created life-long psychological effects.

In today's victim atmosphere, surely we can all reap millions!
posted by HTuttle at 12:35 PM on April 9, 2002