Some Catholic parishioners in southern New Jersey are livid about a luxury upgrade to the housing accommodations of a group of nuns, MyFOXPhilly.com reports. The five nuns recently exchanged their modest three-bedroom home for a six-bedroom country estate located on several acres, complete with a horse stable and a five-car garage.
Critics told the FOX affiliate that such lavish accommodations are better suited for a corporate executive than women who took a vow of poverty.
“It’s completely contradictory for what the purpose of nuns are,” local parishioner Leah Vassallo told MyFOXPhilly.com. “Their whole purpose is to serve the church and live humble modest lives, which this house is anything but.”
But the nuns had run out of space in their old home, a Camden Diocese official told the FOX affiliate, and with as many as three more sisters on the way, a bigger home was needed.
The diocese also defended the move by saying the $800,000 paid for the property was much less than the property was worth and much less than it would have cost to build a new convent for the sisters.
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(Source: FoxN)
We all remember Fr. Ted and Dougal's song "My Lovely Horse".
ReplyDeleteMaybe they can use the Sisters stables!
I don't have any problem with the Sisters buying the home. Religious Orders are self-supporting. They get no money from the Vatican nor from a parish, unless they are being paid for services. The Sisters bought the home with their own money. I don't know if they took an order of poverty or not since not all Orders do, but even if they did, it means that they own nothing of their own. It all belongs to the Order or the monastery. The stables may be used for some income. They may hold retreats there. Besides each of the 7 Sisters needing their own room or cell, a chapel and visiting room will be needed. Mother Angelica in Alabama who started EWTN had a lovely monastery built with donations. She was criticized too. But now it has become a pilgrimage site! My best wishes to the Sisters!
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