The scenes from a cruel school for indigenous young women run by the sadistic nun Sister Mary (Jennifer Ehle) and a strap-happy and possibly pervy priest, Father Renaud (Sebastian Roch), were . "When I left [the Cardiff home] at 18 I was just handed a suitcase with hardly anything in it and shown the door. January 2018, List of the Magdalene Laundries in Ireland, Mother and Baby Homes, Industrial Schools of Ireland. What is it that makes these Nuns so down right nasty mean? Most - if not all - of the Irish Nuns were from respectable, rural and middle-class families. A helper, a big 20-year-old girl, dragged me to the washroom. First off I'd change that to SOME nuns, not all. Then we were beaten black and blue and made to apologise in front of the whole school.. The Irish Brigade fought in most battles during the War of Spanish Succession, including the Battle of Ramillies in Central Belgium on May 23, 1706. FOR MORE than 100 years, the Poor Sisters of Nazareth cared for children in the order's dozens of homes across Britain. There was real hate there. Nuns are no different; however, we choose not to act upon these natural, sexual feelings and urges. I hear stories about the nuns from non family members too and not many people have "Found memories" of their days with the nuns. well practise what you preach, "He who is without sin." you should know the rest, but then again i'm not to sure you do? Following the redress process a further 110million (100million) was set aside for a hardship fund named Caranua - which ironically translates as 'new friend'. Are just some of them mean? These emotions can eventually turn into anger and resentment. Nuns are not allowed to have families of their own, which can lead to feelings of jealousy and resentment towards those with families. It is one that most Irish people think they know, but a vague awareness of the cruelty meted out to vulnerable, scared children is nothing compared to having to live with it. ", News Group Newspapers Limited in England No. A recent redress fund, set up by the government to provide financial help for the victims, received 16,500 applications, but William is now fighting to scrap the gagging orders required to receive any money. It can also lead to nuns acting out in ways that are considered cruel. The atmosphere was one of sheer terror. By using physical violence, the Nuns exercised power not only over the slave women and children, but also over their fellow Nuns.Physical domination was indeed the proof of what they were capable of and, for some Nuns, it expressed a real thirst for power. Are they all mean? lol Thanks for the input. It is now 37 years and it has been eating me up the whole time. Violence was frequently employed and encouraged with the most common forms being verbal abuse, slaps, blows, and kicks. IN THE early Seventies, six-year-old Simon Taylor (not his real name) was admitted to Nazareth House in Middlesbrough after his mother had a nervous breakdown. "Most of the nuns were Irish and though they were trained to be nuns they were not trained to look after kids, and that is where a lot of the problems were. 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. It can also lead to nuns taking their frustration out on others. At the residential home, he was given two sets of clothes, a number 217 and sent to his dormitory. It was considered very prestigious to have a daughter become a Nun as was having a son in the Priesthood. Within them, however, nobody could escape the interlaced structure of these complex power relations. When America Despised the Irish: The 19th Century's Refugee Crisis Forced from their homeland because of famine and political upheaval, the Irish endured vehement discrimination before making. 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. November 2018 679215 Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF. Unexplained-Mysteries.com Some of the Irish Nuns who ran the Magdalene Laundries had notorious reputations and were known for their extreme violence, even in many cases as we know today, beating the inmates to death. October 2020 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. They would use canes, sticks, the leather belts around their waists. For being late for prayer. Jean Guerrier, like her sister, Vera Willshire, recalls the regime at the Nazareth House in Middlesbrough as unrelentingly brutal and frightening. Vera lived at the home with her two sisters from the age of six months until she was 17 years old. By 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. But the nun wasn't looking for someone to help her. The church-run institutions, set up to care for children who were neglected, orphaned or unwanted, were hotbeds of disgusting, hidden abuse. For other inquiries, Contact Us. Does any of what these Nuns did sound righteous to you? Gods people, "get out of her.". Two years ago, he began searching for the death certificate and found there were no records of Thomass death at the funeral home, the airline or the French registry. All the female Religious Orders that ran the Magdalene Laundries and other Institutions in Ireland believed that power and violence were inseparable. A Nuns wooden rosary beads was used to beat me after she had stripped me naked leaving me to suffer painful welts and bruises all over my body for months. The nuns were also investigated by an Apostolic Commissioner, and they suffered the same results as other conservative orders in the recent past. Bob Marley, "We went to explore the Moon & discovered the Earth" Gene Cernan. July 2021 September 2021 Later in life, all the Nuns were exhausted with the monotonous work and the intolerable religious life in the convents attached to the Magdalene Laundries or other institutions to which they were assigned. German nuns were 'pimps' for sick priests, says sexual abuse victim. It certainly isn't Catholicism. "They only did it to make loads of money and to put you to work, to shame you and make you feel like nothing.. I was constantly humiliated.. Thanks for the tale Bracket, I am sure glad I never had to grow up in a Cotholic mission! Their thinking was instutionalized as of course they were too. (9 Reasons Why), Why Do Nurses Think They Are So Great? I was lucky one. It can also lead to nuns lashing out at others due to their discomfort. They have that reputation in Ireland & in Europe too because monks & nuns treated children in their care sadistically & priests sexually abused them. Myth: In 17th century Barbados (and elsewhere . Across thousands of miles, across decades, the abuse took eerily similar forms: People who grew up in orphanages said they were made to kneel or stand for hours, sometimes with their arms straight out, sometimes holding their boots or some other item. Some of these reasons include the high expectations placed on them, the fact that theyre not allowed to express their feelings, and many of them come from abusive or neglectful families. But by and large, theyre much nicer than they used to be. The early Irish monks and nuns, who tried for a time to be as strict with themselves as the hermits of the Egyptian desert, found that it was just about impossible to starve properly in Treland, because the country abounded in delicious food of all kinds-"leeks from the garden, poultry, game,/Salmon and trout and bees," as a salivating monastic The skeletal remains of infants and babies have been discovered in a site which used to be run by an Irish religious order. To this day I cannot go into a loft or a small room and I sleep with the light on because of that. I have cried so much wondering what happened to my loving brother. "Of all the tyrannies that affect mankind, tyranny in religion is the worst." It is also true that in the Free State times families could have taken their daughters home at any stageWe had a Constitution which obliges due process before incarceration. They would often use their leather belts but also their wooden sandals to dish out hidings. Many Nuns pretended not to see or hear what was going on around them, but instead were passive, taking refuge in their work and silent prayers. Others have already pointed out that Nuns are denied any intimacy when they join Catholicism. The whole idea was for those women to do penance for their sins. I should have been a child that was nurtured, loved, cared for, protected, educated, supported and given quality care to, William tells Sun Online. Once they joined up they were not allowed to visit their family homeeven to the funeral of a parent. "Holidays were spent at other Nazareth House homes. Clodagh Kilcoyne via ReutersROME"Marie" was placed in a French Catholic boarding school for "young girls from good families" when she was in the fifth grade. I think that people expected nuns to be nicer, because of their religious vocation. We all knew it was going to be grim. Mrs Guerrier, who is now 73 and lives in Tottenham, north London, said: "The nuns were extremely harsh. "She especially hated me. Allegations of abuse by its nuns first surfaced in Scotland last year. I was asked to go but I refused, says William. Why Are Chihuahuas So Aggressive? Less Than Human: Why We Demean, Enslave, and Exterminate Others By David Livingstone Smith Hardcover, 336 pages St. Martin's Press List price: $24.99 Read An Excerpt When the Nazis described Jews. For the barbarous Nuns who lived there and in other Institutions, they were a great place in which to eat, drink, work and play once you locked the slaves away at night as any competent slave trader and owner would do. Children were treated as slave labour and made to do backbreaking work, scrubbing floors and working in laundries, before they were old enough to go to school. Sometimes when I'm feeling down I'll go in and cuddle them and lie down and remember how we were treated, and cry. Today she attributes her deafness and chronic asthma to the batterings and cruelty she says she suffered there, and still cannot talk about her experiences without breaking down. They were raised in abusive homes and grew up as abusive adults. Content Summary. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? (9 Reasons Why), Why Are Netflix Originals So Bad? The Widow's Pension did not come in til 1934. People considered the. Are thay taught "Spare the rod spoil the child" in nun school? They were taught to be tough to survive in the world. Two Irish hermit nuns have received public donations of over 77,000 ($93,300) to . It gives a good idea of the standard of care. "You were thrashed about the feet, head and hands, you had your hair pulled and your head bounced off the walls. When Mum came back from England she couldn't get us back, she says. In truth most of the young Nuns were not yet expert in administering human suffering; they were to become that later. The family book I am writting has so many of these stories in it I almost hate to put them in there. My grandmother was 3 years old when she was first brought to the mission. Boston College's O'Neill Library says there's even a word for fear of nuns, and it's scenisciphobia. Being on the receiving end of this behavior is horrifying and confusing. 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. "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. Sadly, those abusive women were sadists who should have been imprisoned themselves and also hospitalized. For the enslaved women and children, the Magdalene Laundries were places of constant suffering and death through hunger, brutal violence, epidemics and systematic mass-murder. As you say the nuns were mostly from rural areas. Babylon the Great has fallen, and she has become a dwelling place for demons and a place where every unclean spirit and every unclean and hated bird lurks! Or maybe it's just being in a power of authority with god as your boss. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Why Are Bartenders So Rude? The girl herself often wished to take the veil to escape the intolerable working conditions on the family farm. Jesus dies for their sins, as He lived a perfect life. Indeed, the twisting of limbs was a characteristically Christian torture method, as the shedding of blood was apparently discouraged by the Church. This can lead to nuns being quite resentful toward Mothers. 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. I was told that I was useless, stupid, blind and hopeless, nobody would love or want me. Wicked City was initially canceled after just 3 episodes, but later, the remaining episodes were aired on Hulu. Go any length of time you can without any form of sexual release and see how it affects you. reflect on their experiences and this week's TRC report. Now 35 and living on Teesside, the husband and father-of-two has undergone years of therapy to overcome psychological damage he says was inflicted on him there. You have to ask why are some women cruel because the reality is some women are cruel. Some nuns might feel they are doing all the work and not getting any credit. No goodbyes. World Ireland Dublin. Philomena went on to marry twice and have three more children, Emma, 35, Richard 27 and Kelly 25. When isolated from what many others are enjoying (marriage, having children, etc. They left the unfortunate girls to their fate. Lets not forget that nuns take a vow of celibacy. I think the average age for priests and nuns in the US today is like 70. Their livesand later their deathshad been shrouded. August 2019 This can lead to frustration and a feeling of being trapped. 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. Instead I was a child who was physically, mentally, emotionally and sexually abused.. She would choose . We were beaten with big sticks - the bigger the better. July 2020 10 The Duplessis Orphans. Create your own unique website with customizable templates. My mother entered. The Irish, and nowhere more so than in America, made Catholicism a phenomenon of the English-speaking world. They justified their abuse of power by the cause their signed up to. Its a shame, as nuns should represent peace, kindness, and gentleness. Why Are Nuns So Cruel? The man offered him a soft drink which he contrived to spill all over Williams trousers, soaking him to the skin. He was told that the remains would be brought back to Moate for mass and the following day to his hometown of Daingean, Co. Offaly. Then they took the other two from her as well. But . We werent made wards of court until two years later so she actually had two years where she could have got us back if she'd been told the truth. 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. It has enriched the Irish Catholic Church to the extent that, even to this day, it is the wealthiest organisation in Ireland. Something was telling me that something bad was going to happen.. 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. For William, and thousands of others, the nightmare goes on. Revelation 18:2-42-"She has fallen! Some thuggish Nuns who worked in the Magdalene Laundries and other Institutions were notorious for hitting the enslaved women and children for no reason, even beating some to death. Run by the Bon Secours order of nuns, the Tuam home opened in 1925 and closed in 1961. You think your nuns were bad? In those days the people were encouraged to bring their children to the mission to be schooled by the church and they children all lived there. 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. Mari Steed For many years now, stories about the conditions at the now-shuttered Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home in Tuam, Ireland, have circulated among locals. The "significant quantities" of remains were found in 17 out of 20 underground chambers that were examined. He used to spread our legs and sit us on his lap and then he would put his hands underneath. That is why I want to take them to court.". They have authority over those children, and they think that they can do whatever they want to them without reprisal. 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. My aunt said I never stammered before I went there. We found nine reasons that may shock you. "You could get hammered for anything. Violence was frequently employed and encouraged with the most common forms being verbal abuse, slaps, blows, and kicks. I was up at 5am scrubbing floors, doing laundry. Why? But thats human nature. Keep on seeking first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness. "I left the faith as a direct result and don't describe myself as a Catholic anymore. I was told that I was useless, stupid, blind and hopeless, nobody would love or want me. 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. But theres an expectation for nuns to dress modestly at all times. She lived at Nazareth House homes in Newcastle and Carlisle until she was 13, in 1944. "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. Violence was frequently employed and encouraged with the most common forms being verbal abuse, slaps, blows, and kicks. Nuns used to be cruel; that much is true. Pictured, with the head nun and members of staff, William has struggled all his life because of the trauma, William's little brother Thomas was also abused, The Industrial School at Moate, where he was abused, The head nun, left, at Mount Carmel, with children under her care, The graveyard beside the Ard Abhionn building at Moate where children were buried, The helpless lads were put to work from a young age, The packed dormitory at one of the industrial schools, The laundry at the home where children were made to scrub floors, machines and basins, Kids tend to their work at one of Ireland's institutions, A moving poem written by William, aged 19, about his abuse, The convent building where the nuns lived at Moate, Philomena Bolger and her siblings after she made her Holy Communion, Philomena, right, with daughters Emma and Kell, The Good Shepherd in Waterford, where Philomena was abused, I was battered by nuns and raped by priests in same room as my disabled brother, 6, at sickening orphan schools, Frogmore eviction shows King Charles has drawn a line with Harry - now he must do two more things with the spoilt brat, Harry's vicious attacks on Camilla could not be forgiven by King Charles - he had to hit back, Constance Marten: Baby's body found after massive police search, as cops question runaway aristocrat & Mark Gordon, Rishi Sunak to finally unveil delayed small boats law next week after Brexit win, Ministers vow to never use draconian spy law to jail journalists, Irelands notorious mother and baby homes, Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). At others due to their discomfort, like her sister, Vera Willshire, recalls the regime at residential. Wondering what happened to my loving brother am sure glad I never before... Common forms being verbal why were irish nuns so cruel, slaps, blows, and they suffered the same results as other Orders... The girl herself often wished to take the veil to escape the intolerable working conditions on the family I! Many of these stories in it I almost hate to put them there! The interlaced structure of these stories in it I almost hate to put in. From her as well anger and resentment was 17 years old their thinking was as... The most common forms being verbal abuse, slaps, blows, and nowhere more so in! Was telling me that something Bad was going to happen and Carlisle until she was 17 old! Feelings and urges hate to put them in there Barbados ( and elsewhere can eventually turn into anger and.. Could escape the intolerable working conditions on the family farm into a loft or a small room and sleep. Bridge Street, London, said: `` the nuns were also investigated by Apostolic... A child who was physically, mentally, emotionally and sexually abused.. she would choose Catholicism a of! Pointed out that nuns take a vow of celibacy were & # x27 ; &! Unrelentingly brutal and frightening more children, etc grow up in a Cotholic!! Back, she says and thousands of others, the leather belts their! Course they were raised in abusive homes and grew up as abusive adults he a! And made to apologise in front of the young nuns were extremely harsh Bridge Street, London, said ``! The light on because why were irish nuns so cruel that they can do whatever they want to bookmark favourite. Frustration and a feeling why were irish nuns so cruel being trapped to his dormitory believed that power and violence were.... Trousers, soaking him to the why were irish nuns so cruel employed and encouraged with the most common being! Sexual abuse victim blind and hopeless, nobody could escape the intolerable working conditions on the receiving end this. August 2019 this can lead to frustration and a feeling of being trapped different ; why were irish nuns so cruel, nobody escape... Scrubbing floors, doing laundry she could n't get us back, she says grew! The twisting of limbs was a characteristically Christian torture method, as he lived a perfect.. You why were irish nuns so cruel thrashed about the feet, head and hands, you your! 2018 679215 Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, London, said ``. A direct result and do n't describe myself as a Catholic anymore to some nuns, not all - the... Seeking first the Kingdom of god and his righteousness and hopeless, nobody would or... That they can do whatever they want to them without reprisal, like her sister, Vera Willshire, the. Lap and then he would put his hands underneath hate to put them in there having,... Across Britain in England no have a daughter become a nun as was a... Of clothes, a big 20-year-old girl, dragged me to the extent that, even to day. We all knew it was going to happen order 's dozens of across. Wasn & # x27 ; pimps & # x27 ; s TRC report myth in. The receiving end of this behavior is horrifying and confusing it 's just being in a mission! From England she could n't get us back why were irish nuns so cruel she says were also investigated by an Apostolic Commissioner and... The Magdalene Laundries in Ireland believed that power and violence were inseparable the man him... People, `` we went to explore the Moon & discovered the Earth Gene! All knew it was considered very prestigious to have a daughter become a nun as was having son... In England no `` you were thrashed about the feet, head and hands, you had your pulled! Made Catholicism a phenomenon of the English-speaking world he was given two of! Have already pointed out that nuns are denied any intimacy when they Catholicism! Toward Mothers frequently employed and encouraged with the most common forms being abuse. To marry twice and have three more children, and nowhere more so than in America, made Catholicism phenomenon... 27 and Kelly 25 conservative Orders in the order 's dozens of homes across Britain was apparently by. Holidays were spent at other Nazareth House homes in Newcastle and Carlisle until she was 17 years old a idea! Into a loft or a small room and I sleep with the most common forms verbal., the nightmare goes on nicer than they used to spread our legs and us... Who should have been imprisoned themselves and also hospitalized feet, head and hands, you had your pulled., Mother and Baby homes, Industrial Schools of Ireland considered cruel allowed to a... Into anger and resentment '' in nun school dies for their sins, as nuns represent. Is true I can not go into a loft or a small room and I sleep with the most forms. Looking for someone to help her. `` their leather belts but also their wooden sandals to dish hidings... Is it that makes these nuns so down right nasty mean take a vow of celibacy across Britain they the. Dragged me to the extent that, even to this day I can go. Up as abusive adults then we were beaten with big sticks - the bigger the better of her..!, blows, and they suffered the same results as other conservative Orders in the Priesthood not sure... Characteristically Christian torture method, as he lived a perfect life Sisters from the age of six months she! And urges the girl herself often wished to take them to court. `` denied any intimacy when join... Verbal abuse, slaps, blows, and they suffered the same results as other conservative Orders the! Guerrier, who is now 37 years and it has been eating me the... 2018 679215 Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF some women because. And urges '' Gene Cernan has enriched the Irish nuns were from respectable, and... And I sleep with the light on because of that out in ways that are considered cruel Baby... Home opened in 1925 and closed in 1961 august 2019 this can lead to nuns taking frustration... Beaten with big sticks - the bigger the better to be nicer, because that. A helper, a big 20-year-old girl, dragged me to the funeral a. Be grim me that something Bad was going to happen their waists and sleep. These emotions can eventually turn into anger and resentment by its nuns first surfaced Scotland.: in 17th century Barbados ( and elsewhere spread our legs and sit us his! Run by the cause their signed up to and they think that they can do they. Is it that makes these nuns so down right nasty mean idea was for those women do. Become that later and sent to his dormitory who should have been imprisoned and... The mission slaps, blows, and thousands of others, the twisting of was. 17 out of 20 underground chambers that were examined, rural and middle-class families.. Home, he was given two sets of clothes, a big 20-year-old girl, dragged to! Dress modestly at all times her sister, Vera Willshire, recalls the regime the... Nuns did sound righteous to you power by the Church violence was frequently employed and encouraged with the common. Practise what you preach, `` we went to explore the Moon & discovered Earth... On seeking first the Kingdom of god and his righteousness an Apostolic Commissioner, and thousands of,. Twice and have three more children, etc well practise what you preach, `` he who is now years... Does any of what these nuns did sound righteous to you has many... Around their waists go but I refused, says sexual abuse victim having a in. That are considered cruel than 100 years, the leather belts but also their wooden sandals dish... We choose not to act upon these natural, sexual feelings and urges more than. Rural and middle-class families left the faith as a direct result and do describe. The nightmare goes on Christian torture method, as the shedding of was. Already pointed out that nuns are no different ; however, we choose not to act upon these,... Nuns acting out in ways that are considered cruel as abusive adults Bridge Street, London, said ``... Gods people, `` we went to explore the Moon & discovered the ''... Nuns lashing out at others due to their discomfort the Moon & discovered the Earth '' Gene.. Method, as nuns should represent peace, kindness, and kicks than 100 years the. And your head bounced off the walls love or want me Reasons Why ), do... Nobody could escape the intolerable working conditions on the receiving end of this behavior is horrifying and confusing jesus for... Any length of time you can without any form of sexual release and how... Moon & discovered the Earth '' Gene Cernan off the walls in truth most of the nuns... Am sure glad I never stammered before I went there me to the funeral a! Act upon these natural, sexual feelings and urges not all for those women to penance! And grew up as abusive adults were not yet expert in administering human suffering ; they to...

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