Assaults rape and abortions Sisters are wailing their tragedies in Catholic churches

Hisham Abdel Khaliq: The nun is no longer going to confess to the priest in Italy after being attacked in her most vulnerable moments when she confesses to her sins in a university classroom 20 years ago. At this time, the nun told her story only to the head of the province and her spiritual director and was silenced by the secret Catholic culture of the Catholic Church, and also by her promises of obedience, her fear, her sense of shame and disgrace. "The priest opened the door with a deep wound inside me and pretended it had not happened," the nun told the Associated Press. After decades of silence, the nun became one of the very few women who had public accounts, suggesting that the Catholic Church recognize the fact that sexual abuse was perpetrated on religious sisters by the pastor and bishop of the church. Such an outbreak has spread in Europe, Africa, South America, and Asia, confirming that the problem is widespread and widespread because of the tradition of the Catholic Church, which suggests that nuns are second-class and subject to those who run the church, according to an Associated Press poll. Tales After years of silence, nuns have now been able to express what they suffered, influenced by the movement of MeToo, and the international recognition that adults can be victims of sexual assault when there is a power imbalance in the relationship. The nuns published their stories because of years of inaction by church leaders, The major studies on this problem in the African continent to the Vatican in the nineties of the last century. The case, according to the agency, caught on in the wake of what she described as scandals about child sexual abuse and, more recently, of adults, including the revelation that one of the most prominent cardinals, Americans, Theodore McCarrick, mistreated the clergy Of the monks) were sexually assaulted, and it was not yet clear how ill-treated the nuns were, at least outside the Vatican. Experts told the agency that nuns declined to report cases of sexual assault because of their growing fear of disbelief. Church leaders declined to acknowledge that some monks and bishops ignored promises they made to abstain from sex because they knew their secrets would not be revealed. But in Chile this week, nuns in a small religious community narrated their stories about attacks by monks and nuns on national television, and how their supervisor did nothing to stop it. A nun made a formal complaint in the police accusing a bishop of raping her, No one imagined it happening a year ago. In 2013, for example, a well-known monk in Uganda wrote a letter to his supervisor saying that the monks shared romantic relations with the sisters, and the monk was punished for stopping him from serving in the church until he apologized in May. In Italy with the Agency to give further light to the issue. Carlin Dimashur, a church expert on sexual abuse of clergy and the misuse of power, said in an interview with the Associated Press: "It is very sad that it took all this time to become official, because there have been reports a long time ago, and I hope there will be reactions To take care of the victims and to end such attacks and harassment. " Vatican's position The Vatican refused to comment on its decisions - if any - to assess the scale of the problem globally, what it did to punish the aggressors, or even to pay attention to the victims. An official said that the leaders of the local churches decide to punish the monks who attack the sisters But these crimes usually go unpunished in ecclesiastical and civil courts as well. The official, who declined to be named, said only a few cases had been brought to the papal court for investigation, a reference to the fact that the Catholic Church had no clear procedures for investigating and punishing bishops who abused themselves or allowed abusers to remain in office, A legal loophole that was highlighted in the Makarek case. The church has recently symbolized its concern for the protection of children, but adults at risk "deserve some protection," the official said. "Women should be encouraged to speak when they are harassed, to encourage bishops to take them seriously and to ensure that monks are punished if they make a mistake." The nuns, the great obstacle facing the sisters who have been attacked, are to be taken seriously, says Dimashur. "The monks can always doubt the authenticity of the sisters' accounts, saying that they are the ones who want sex, That women are the ones who seduce men "Many of the monks in Africa, for example, have a commitment to celibacy because of traditional and cultural beliefs about the importance of having children, and early sisters who are at the beginning of their lives are more likely to be sexually abused because they are in need. To a letter of recommendation from their parish priest to accept in some religious communities, and sometimes - as Demachor says - they have to pay for it. When these women become pregnant, they have an abortion, according to Dimashur, even if it is repeated more than once. The monk pays the price for this process. Sisters do not have money, unlike the monk, and there may even be a price to silence the amount of these problems. "Not a new problem" Before recent reports of sexual assaults on nuns by monks, he made secret reports on the problem, focusing on Africa and AIDS in the 1990s, reports were made on the orders of senior church officials, and in 1994 the sister wrote

In Uganda, wrote to his supervisor saying that the monks had been involved with the sisters in a romantic relationship, and the monk was punished for stopping him from serving in the church until he apologized in May. The sisters in Italy spoke to the agency to shed more light on the case.

Carlin Dimashur, a church expert on sexual abuse of clergy and the misuse of power, said in an interview with the Associated Press: "It is very sad that it took all this time to become official, because there have been reports a long time ago, and I hope there will be reactions To take care of the victims and to end such attacks and harassment. "

The position of the Vatican

The Vatican refused to comment on its decisions, if any, to assess the scale of the problem globally, what it did to punish the aggressors or even to pay attention to the victims. An official said that the leaders of the local churches were the ones who decided to punish the monks who sexually assault the sisters, But these crimes usually go unpunished in ecclesiastical and civil courts as well.

The official, who declined to be named, said only a few cases had been brought to the papal court for investigation, a reference to the fact that the Catholic Church had no clear procedures for investigating and punishing bishops who abused themselves or allowed abusers to remain in office, A legal loophole that was highlighted in the Makarek case.

The church has recently symbolized its concern for the protection of children, but adults at risk "deserve some protection." Women should be encouraged to speak when they are harassed, to encourage bishops to take them seriously and to ensure that monks are punished if they make mistakes.

Obstacles to nuns

The great obstacle facing the sisters who have been assaulted is to be taken seriously, says Dimashur. "Monks can always doubt the authenticity of the sisters' accounts, saying that they are the ones who want the sexual relationship, That women are those who seduce men, not vice versa. "

"Many monks in Africa, for example, suffer from a commitment to celibacy because of traditional and cultural beliefs about the importance of having children, and early sisters who are at the beginning of their lives are more vulnerable to sexual abuse because they need a priest's letter of recommendation They have been encouraged to accept some religious groups, and sometimes - as Demachur says - they have to pay for it.

When these women become pregnant, they have an abortion, according to Dimashur, even if it is repeated more than once. The monk pays the price for this process. Sisters do not have money, unlike the monk, and there may even be a price to silence the amount of these problems.

"Not a new problem"

Prior to recent reports of sexual abuse of nuns by monks, secret reports were prepared on the problem, focusing on Africa and AIDS in the 1990s, reports on the orders of senior church officials, and in 1994 the late sister Maora Odonho, The most comprehensive survey of a six-year survey in 23 countries in which 29 nuns were found to be vaccinated in one gathering.

According to the study, nuns were considered "safe" sex partners for monks who feared for HIV if they went to sex workers or women of the general public.

Four years later, in a report to senior religious leaders and Vatican officials, Sister Mary MacDonald said that the harassment and rape of African sisters by priests were "common" and, at times, when the nun became pregnant, the priest insisted on an abortion.

"The problem went with the sisters when they went to study in Rome, where they were asking for monks to help write articles, and they had to have sex for these services," says the McDonald report.

"The African Church has made great strides since the 1990s, since its missionary work in Kenya, but the problem has not been resolved," says Paola Moggi, a member of the missionary commune, which has a distinguished presence in 16 African countries.

"I found the sisters from Africa, who are now free from restrictions and say what they have if a monk wanted to have sex with them. On the other hand, I found sisters saying," You have to understand the needs of the monks. - Women - menstrual cycle, men have a continuous cycle of endless sperm, "in words outdated from the nineties."

Attacks in several countries

The fact that in several weeks the alleged rape of the brothers by monks of two other continents - Asia and Latin America - has shown that the problem is not only related to the continent and that some women are now ready to break the tradition and publicly recognize it.

In India, one of the sisters in the "Evangelist of Jesus" filed a complaint with the police last year, accusing a bishop of raping her in May 2014 during a visit to the predominantly Christian Indian state of Kerala and sexually assaulting her several times over the next two years, The bishop made these accusations and said that the woman had retaliated against him for taking action against him for her disgraceful sexual acts.

In Chile, the scandal of Samarra's good sisters spread at the same time that the Catholic system of the state was attacked after decades of sexual scandals. The scandal became even worse in May. Pope Francis summoned all bishops from Chile to Rome, collective.

Charges revealed by the Chilean media include charges of mocking priests and kissing nuns, and sometimes while they are naked,

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