In a telling social media post, Rev’d Sr. Kinse Annastasia who by her social media bio works at Veritas University, Bwari, Abuja, challenges the Catholic Church to do more to protect Rev’d Sisters in the church. She narrated the ordeal of reverend sisters in the hands of priests and top church authorities. According to her;
“Religious Sisters are not ornaments in Habits. We are not commodities for priests to use at will, nor are we mistresses in veils. We are women called by God, consecrated to service, prayer, and the mission of the Church”
“Yet too often, behind stained glass windows and polished marble altars, we are treated as less. A priest once told me without shame: “Sisters are meant to be priests’ wives.” He did not say it in jest. He meant it. And he acted on it”
“This is not an isolated case. Too many Sisters know the pain of being reduced to temptation instead of being respected as collaborators in Christ’s vineyard. Too many know the silent wounds of manipulation—when a cleric uses “spiritual direction” as a cover for advances, or when financial benefactors expect our dignity in exchange for support. But it does not end there. The abuse is not only from outside.”
“Within our own congregations, superiors sometimes wield authority as a weapon. Sisters are silenced and maltreated leaving them vulnerable to predators. Others, instead of guiding with integrity, flirt with power and position while the rest are crushed under obedience without justice. We see this and stay silent”
“And let me be equally clear: to those Sisters who abandon their vows for promiscuity—whether to gain favor, material advantage, or pleasure—you too wound the Body of Christ. You weaken the prophetic witness of consecrated life and betray the very dignity we demand from the world. It is betrayal from within, and it hands the enemies of truth more reasons to sneer at our vocation”
“The scandal is not only in the sin itself, but in the silence that protects it. A Church that preaches purity while tolerating the defilement of its consecrated women is a Church that mocks its own Gospel”
“I write this, not out of hatred for the Church but I love my Church too much to stay silent. Such silence has never protected the innocent it only feeds the wolves”
“Religious Sisters are not priests’ wives I say again. We are not bedmates. We are not bargaining tickets used to gain benefactors for the community. We are women of God, and until the Church begins to honour this truth, it will continue to rot from within.
To those priests, I say: your vocation does not give you ownership over ours. To superiors, I say this: authority is not a license for cruelty. To Sisters, I say: fidelity is not optional—it is the very soul of our consecration.
“And to the Church I still love dearly, I cry: Do better because God is watching. And finally, I make this pledge: provide a better platform and a safe channel for reporting abuse without intimidation, and I promise to delete my personal Facebook account and work wholeheartedly with such an organization. Because we do not seek scandal or validation, likes or comments—we seek truth, justice, and dignity in the house of God”
