The Queremosunconvento.com (“Wewantaconvent.com”) webpage went live days after the provincial court of Burgos rejected the appeal against a legal order to evict them from the monastery of the Poor Clares of Belorado, near Burgos.
The ex-nuns are due for eviction from Belorado on 10 February. On their new webpage, the former nuns said they are “threatened with immediate eviction” and “seek help” so as not to be compelled to abandon their vocation.
“The Claretian nuns of this community are living through one of the most difficult and dramatic times in their history,” they continued. “They have been ill-treated, accused and persecuted simply for believing in their own plan for their lives. Today, more than ever, they are seeking an opportunity to continue with their long tradition of living as religious sisters surrendered to the faith.”
In May 2024, the Poor Clares of Belorado announced they were leaving the Catholic Church and no longer recognised the authority of Pope Francis or any pontiff since 1958. They were later excommunicated.
In a statement the Archdiocese of Burgos said the court had acknowledged that according to canon law the monastery did not belong to the nuns residing there. It added that the Archbishop of Burgos Mario Iceta had been within his rights, as the commissar appointed to oversee the monastery by the Vatican, to expel them.
The ex-nuns suggest their new home might be found in the increasingly depopulated areas of rural Spain. “There are hundreds of empty buildings where no one lives – spaces that could have life, a meaning and a future once again,” they wrote on their webpage.
“That is why we are asking for the co-operation of individuals, institutions or owners who can donate, cede or sell at a low cost a place where [we] can make a fresh start,” the community said.
“We want a convent. We want a future. We want to continue” they continued, appealing to “the sense of solidarity of the Spanish” for help.
The nuns of Belorado “are distinguished by their charisma, courage and energy”, said a spokesman for the community. “Even if they are expelled from Belorado, their bond will remain intact since they are religious sisters who are solid, coherent and profoundly committed to their faith and vocation.”