nuns denounce the law of silence

For this thirty-five-year-old nun, the pain remains acute when recalling her twelve years spent in the Saint-Jean community. She then thought of offering her life to others, to God and recounts having suffered sexual assault from, in particular, a sister superior. She mentions “caresses, kisses, had to undress.”

I was in a relationship that didn’t allow you to say no

An Apostolic Sister of Saint John

At the Eye of the 20H

Unthinkable to say no: “We were taught that to do God’s will, we had to respond to the wishes of our superiors. I quickly understood that I had to accept gestures of tenderness from a superior. I was in a relationship that didn’t allow you to say no.

Until the day she decides to denounce the facts to the hierarchy of her congregation. The Sister Superior will be moved to another priory. In shock, she also remembers hearing words “mind-blowing” as : “There is no danger, the new young sister she will have under her authority is not her type of woman. She won’t be attracted to her.”

No one has ever suggested that I file a complaint or go to civil justice.

An Apostolic Sister of Saint John

At the Eye of the 20H

A lack of sanction, she deplores, which leaves her no other choice but to leave her community. She tried to alert but “in Saint Jean, even before having recourse to canonical justice, we try to resolve everything internally. No one has ever suggested that I file a complaint or go to civil justice.” she says.

As a form of forgiveness, she will nevertheless receive a letter, signed by the prior general who informs her: “On the side of the Church, there will be no further investigation or trial allowing the judicial recognition of the abuses you suffered (…) However, the facts have been recognized (…) I ask your forgiveness, on behalf of the congregation”

Today, she has retained a lawyer and plans to file a complaint.

On its website, however, the community encourages victims “to report these facts to the courts.”

But here is what this person in charge of one of the community’s priories says, when the subject is raised : “The trials, the interrogations, it’s heavy, very heavy for the victims. From what I have seen, when the culprit admits, and says: “I recognize the facts”, which he tries to understand, I do not see why anyone would throw stones at him”.

I was the bad one because I spoke, I was the traitor

An Apostolic Sister of Saint John

At the Eye of the 20H

A law of silence which seems difficult to break according to this other apostolic sister, now exclaustrated, who had the bitter experience: “My congregation told me: “You don’t denounce your brother, I don’t want to know anything. We have always feel like it’s us who are at fault. Me, I was the bad one because I spoke, I was the traitor”

She ended up going to court. Like her, according to our information, three sisters filed a complaint.

Half of the Apostolic Sisters of Saint John, victims of sexual abuse

The Saint-Jean community has 170 apostolic sisters. 130 of them responded anonymously to an internal questionnaire of which we obtained the confidential report, submitted to the community authorities in June 2023.

Sixty-six nuns, half of them, declare having been victims of “violence“, of “constraints“, of “threat“, “d‘exhibitionism“and also of”rapes“. “An abyss of dysfunction, suffering, misfortune”concludes the report.

A community placed under the authority of Mgr Benoît Rivière, bishop of Autun in Saône-et-Loire, since 2006. Given the extent of the abuses mentioned in the report, he admits not having read the report in detail but said “frightened by the number of sisters” who say they are abused.

Would it have been healthy to dissolve the Saint-Jean community? “No” he says, adding: “I have always thought that there is a wire crossing. The thread of life and threads of perversity, violence, sometimes lies. I still believe that the thread of life is more important, as long as we look things in the face and denounce evil. This is what was done in this congregation, which I supported as best I could.” Today, he encourages sisters who are victims of abuse to file a complaint.