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MAN AWARDED £ 250,000 BY JUDGE AGAINST BELFAST NAZARETH SISTERS.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-64642465.amp

A man who claimed that a nun subjected him to years of sexual and physical abuse at a children’s home in Belfast is to receive £250,000 in damages.

The 41-year-old man, who is not being identified for legal reasons, stayed in Nazareth Lodge as a boy.

The payout forms part of a settlement reached over allegations that he was beaten and assaulted on a weekly basis.

He also claimed he was locked in a cupboard, made to eat food out of bins and was sat on as a form of punishment.

His action against the Sisters of Nazareth religious order was resolved at the High Court in Belfast without any admission of liability.

Lawyers for the plaintiff alleged that he was targeted between 1989 and 1996 by a senior nun at the home located on Ravenhill Road.

Dragged under a staircase’

He was groomed from the age of eight for the purposes of an abusive sexual, physical and emotional relationship, according to papers in the case.

The alleged treatment involved forbidding him from joining the rest of the children at mealtimes or speaking to other residents and members of staff.

It was claimed that the nun regularly punched, slapped, nipped and poked him, held him down, and pulled his hair.

On another occasion she allegedly dragged the plaintiff under a staircase to sit on him and spit in his face.

The nun was also said to have instructed a former resident, with whom she had an intimate relationship, to carry out an attack.

In a bid to prevent the plaintiff from telling anyone, she offered to reward him with sweets or by taking him for car journeys out of the home.

The lawsuit involved claims for negligence, assault, and post-traumatic stress disorder he suffered.

According to the man’s case, he was denied medical treatment for injuries inflicted by the nun.

‘Shame and suffering’

It was claimed that she told him that he was not lovable and she described him as a “reject”, “useless” and “dirty, fat and greedy”.

With the alleged sexual assaults described as “oppressive and degrading”, aggravated damages were sought due to the plaintiff’s young age.

The case had been listed for a three-day High Court trial but after negotiations a settlement was announced.

The judge ordered the Sisters of Nazareth to pay the man £250,000 in damages as well as his legal costs.

Outside court the man’s solicitor Claire McKeegan said he was relieved that his “ordeal” was over.

“Survivors of historical abuse carry with them from childhood a lifetime of shame and insecurity and suffering,” she said.

“Today’s settlement provides further vindication for survivors of religious institutions in Northern Ireland that abuse perpetrated on children was wrong and those who caused harm will be held accountable in our courts.”

PAT SAYS

In my childhood, I met wicked, aggressive, and violent nuns – nuns from Hell.

I always thought that these monsters were sexually frustrated and that they hated children because they would never have one themselves.

I remember seeing a vodka add that reminded me of these nuns:

“SO PURE THEY ARE WICKED”.

In this case, the nun beat the boy, locked him in a cupboard, spat on him, sat on him, pulled his hair out, isolated him from the other children etc, made him eat from bins.

I wonder if that old witch is still alive?

She should be named and shamed.

CAHAL DALY AND NAZARETH LODGE

As a priest, Cahal Daly was chaplain to the Nazareth Sisters in Belfast and said Mass for them daily.

When Daly was appointed Bishop in Longford, he took one of the orphans from Nazareth Lodge, who was 16 to live with him in Longford.

He told the boy not to tell the nuns where he was going or who he was going with.

The boy was James, and he lived as Daly’s servant until Daly died. Daly always introduced him as his “valet.“

Here they are in Rome when Daly was made a cardinal

James died recently. RIP.

JAMES DEATH NOTICE

James DONNELLY

Died 16 January 2022 peacefully at Nazareth Care Village

The remains of James will leave O’Kane’s Funeral Home 116-118 Donegall Street Belfast BT1 2GX on Tuesday 18th January 2022

James’s remains shall be received at St Brigid’s Church, Derryvolgie Avenue at 6.00pm.

Requiem Mass will be on Wednesday 19th January at 11.00 am followed by interment in Milltown Cemetery.

Mass will be streamed live via https://stbrigidsparishbelfast.org/links

Our Lady of Lourdes pray for him.

Rest in peace

Deeply regretted by the Daly Family and his extensive circle of friends.

134 replies on “MAN AWARDED £ 250,000 BY JUDGE AGAINST BELFAST NAZARETH SISTERS.”

10:15pm Another Mark Kirby, being fawned over and waited on hand and foot by the nuns.

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No doubt Cardinal Daly was a big hit with those scolding old scald crows. I get a shiver down my spine when I remember my schooldays.

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Kathy Ferguson told Joe Duffy on Irish radio station RTE that she was in Ennis Industrial School in County Clare, Ireland from December 1948 to December 1955. In 1969 she was told the birth certificate that was given to her did not belong to her. Instead through other means independently of the nuns, she obtained court records which showed her father was in the British Army.
Kathy Ferguson also received medical files which showed she had been given 3 BCG injections in the space of 18 months leading her to question whether she had been experimented on, this being yet another income stream for the convent.
Kathy recalled she fell ill in the orphanage and was operated on whilst still awake. She described the way that other children were treated as “absolutely disgraceful”.
Patricia McDonald founder of Justice for Magdalene Laundries told Joe Duffy on RTE Radio One Liveline that a statue dedicated to the Sisters of Mercy outside a former laundry in Dublin should be removed.
Locals in Ennis, County Clare opposed a statue dedicated to the Sisters of Mercy located near the site of the former industrial school in Ennis.

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Confirmed that she was a slave in a Co Tipperary industrial school laundry. She that the Sisters of Mercy were paid by the head by the Irish government and used the children as slaves as the laundries also had contracts and were being paid by outside hospitals and other organisations for the work the mothers and orphans were doing for no payment in the laundries and industrial schools.

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9:37 continued denial of justice will keep church Abuse issues in current focus until resolved to satisfaction of victims, survivors and all concerned.

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Ennis - preference given to memorial for Sisters of Mercy over a memorial to victims of Ennis Industrial School & Laundry abuse.says:

Barry Wrafter, the sculptor told Joe Duffy that the commission would not be his chosen subject but work is work for an artist.
He did not put a name on the statue and had it down as simply “Sisters of Mercy” sculpture.
Noel Crowley from Clare County Council commissioned the sculpture and said he was granted planning permission to place it on the wall of the site which is now a the County museum.
He says the Sisters of Mercy were aware of the plans to erect the statue but Noel Crowley confirmed that he did not consult with local Ennis people or local media. He says he gave his plans to the Urban Council. This suggests the planning notice may not have been publicly published. He says a “normal person” would approach the Museum from another direction to avoid offence.
Sculptor, Barry Wrafter, said another commission by the Ennis Urban Council was advertised at the same time to make a sculpture commemorating the victims of industrial schools but that fell through. Wrafter questioned the timing of Crowley’s commission. He stated “it’s a bit of a coincidence. It was at the exact same time. The timing is very strange”, he added.
He also said that he found it difficult to work with Noel Crowley while Noel said the reverse was also true.
Artist Mary Ronayne defended Barry saying she worked as an artist in Germany where she was part of a team commissioned by the Austrian government to change the whole energy of what went on where many young boys were killed.
She told Joe Duffy that she believes that the statue should be removed as “it’s too hurtful”. She also stated that she was quite offended by Noel Crowley from Clare County Council who commissioned the statue commemorating the Ennis Sisters of Mercy. She described him as having a dismissive attitude.

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Get a grip! The nuns did sterling work for the poor and ignirant, and should be honoured. Your sourgrapes prove that you are more ignorant than poor.😏

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9:24 shame on those educated nuns to deprive the poor of the chance for self improvement by enslaving them for profit in laundries instead of feeding them properly and educating them as the governments were paying these nuns to do. Abusive exploitation. Another Shameful legacy courtesy of RCC.

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Brian McMahon told RTE’s Liveline the statue which depicts a nun, mother and baby is a “distortion of history”.

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The clerics and their types are long established experts in dictating narratives but the public see right through them these days. It’s just them and their inner self interested circles of “friends with benefits” these days.

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Poor orphan James appears to have been groomed as for life for the Irish Cardinal, Cahal Daly, who had the audacity to treat Bishop Pat Buckley so badly.

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It can be said that a vulnerable 16 year old in 1967 was not in a position to make a life time commitment

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@Bishop Pat 11.16
What about a 17 year old in Maynooth in 2005, who went on to be a curate in Raphoe and is now MIA…

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11.16

Pat, you’ve said that James was neither learning disabled nor of low intelligence, and yet, more than once you described him as vulnerable. How was he vulnerable?

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Alone, totally dependent upon the Daly’s, no confidence and had developed an alcohol problem.

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In all fairness, the position now must be, if a priest or religious is accused of ANYTHING, they must be presumed guilty. That’s only right, so it is.

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It is “really disturbing” inasmuch as such abusive behaviour from anyone, let alone a priest, causes disturbing revulsion.
But it’s really not disturbing in the sense of it being an isolated or rare matter. By now, in relation to clergy, it has become ‘par for the course.
MMM’

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4.07: MMM – risen one! Just like your former profession as a social worker, which should of course read: home wrecker!! You know that of course, don’t you, fool? What horrible litanies of neglect, carelessness and harm left by your profession – even still.

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Those nuns must have been reared in homes where the parents were very cruel to the family servants. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

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Shocking and depraved behaviour by this awful nun. The Holier than thou types are often the most sick and twisted.

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The Religious Sisters of Charity were just as brutal. Some of them were so bitter, spiteful – it most certainly was not Charity.

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I worked for the Sisters of Charity for 12 years. I lived in fear and terror. I am still impacted by their bullying, control and humiliation. I now realise that their Godly existence is driven by power and money. If they are charitable hand over most properties to the state for homelessness. The Sanctuary is another example of commercial greed dressed up as spirituality!

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@9:49
Nuns and priests and their inner circles are greedy money mad sadists. Dangerous and complicit crooks with rosary beads. Ugh.

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@9.34am: Nonsense just about sums it up. Your comment betrays the belief that a homosexual cannot help others or be a pastor or pilgrim.

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Another evil, sick and twisted old crone using the image of God as a front to exercise her cruelty and depravity. Her mother must be turning in her grave. Good to see justice done this time.

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Why the f**k did Daly need a valet ? Really ?! Either Daly had grand notions beyond his status, or he just wanted a bit of eye candy around the place. I suspect both. And then we come down to Treanor surrounding himself with Brazilians.

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Get a grip! Why shouldn’t His Eminence Cahal Cardinal Daly have a valet? I bet you had your mammy and sisters at your lazy beck and call when you were a brat growing up.😏

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9:41 Don’t be silly. I had a maid of my own, like everyone else we knew. Where were you dragged up.

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Pat, you seem to have tamed the vulgarity and abusiveness of the poster at 9.41. But only for the time being? You’ll need to keep an eye on him..We certsinly will.

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Patsy, I’ve only posted twice today, apart from this one, and you didn’t publish one of my comments. I feel you’re being unfair to me, Patsy. Was it something I said?😏

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Dan Leonard, VG of Birmingham, always had a man servant or valet in his digs at St Michael’s. Mind you, Dan had a bit of breeding and quality about him. A gentleman.

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Did James ever complain that he had been abused by Cardinal Daly in any way? No? Therefore, this is all lurid, fanciful speculation about the relationship between His Eminence and James.

Some commenters here are believing about them what they want to believe. Pathetic!

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James was gay. He had a romantic love for Charlie.

Daly changed his name from Charles to Cahal in 1978.

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Thanks, Pat. Didn’t know any of that.

Do you think Daly reciprocated James’ feelings for him? Do you think that Daly knew James had romantic feelings for him? Christ! Is this why Daly took him, at 16!, to live with him in Longford?

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Daly was a homosexual. But I have no evidence he acted out on it – although he did like to be touchy freely with an occasional young man.

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I remember those penguins going round the Catholic homes in my estate in the 1960s to collect money for the orphans. They always scared me. God knows how the ‘orphans’ in Nazareth Lodge felt. Maybe he didn’t give a shit, much like the nuns themselves.

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Is Bishop Pat now the most trusted bishop in the land. The one who everyone turns to everyday, clergy and laity alike. The only one who tells the truth.

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Again the actions of the nun is caused by repressed sexuality and took her frustration out on the children. The clergy will have to be open about their sexuality and if they are not asexual and celibate how do they cope with repressed sexuality.
The RCC said that if you have repressed sexuality you pray and pray to Jesus. But if the repressed clergy were in close prayer with God why is RCC in an awful mess. An asexual person would find it no bother to be a celibate and would find the RCC celibate life a joy.

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Cruelty of the nuns have been well known. No surprises there but not much of documentation.

I saw a lot of cruelty by the nuns in 1st school which was founded by mc quaid. There was some kind nuns who couldn’t overrule a abbess who went and beyond the nature of cruelty. We didn’t know what was the word to call it.

Now we know as we call it ‘evil’ beyond the pale. Lot of deaf boys were psychologically damaged but years to recover. That nun was from the North, think it was Tyrone or Coalisland not sure she ran with an iron fist. No nun dared to over rule or fight back until it was too late. She was very young to be made as an Abbess age 33 or 35 at that time. Looking back now I could apply litany of words to describe her, vindictiveness, cruelty and sexual frustration. She brought a 10 years old boy to her bed with bra and panties. That was shocking when I heard it first time last year (met a mate some 30 years later since left school).

Other well known documentary on cruelty of the nuns were :

Movie:Philomena

Tuam – 800 babies dumped.

Feel free to list or add it here.

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10:40 Good morning Deaf Guy.

Nuns always have such neat graveyards for their own members but thought nothing of dumping babies in mass graves and illegally destroying or altering identity papers and lying to and gaslighting orphans who requested information years later.

Cruel, evil and disrespectful to this day.

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Anon at 10.58am
Good morning to you too.
This blog documents a lot of stories, anecdotes and court cases etc
But there is a dearth of stories or anecdotes re nuns on this blog. This needs to be discussed here a lot as we know enough about priests antics, cottaging housekeepers, same sex relationship inside the church.
But what about the nuns 🤷‍♀️
Heard a second hand story from a deaf priest in UK that a nun confessed her sin to him re masturbation as that was some 20 years ago. But not a lot re nuns to be said or to be aired on public.
Hence a hidden side of the nuns.

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Anon at 10.58am
To be honest with you, I never noticed nun’s NEAT graveyard as it hadn’t occurred to me until now.
It reminded me of their back gardens very neat and ordered in 1st school that I went. I never thought about it until you mentioned it.
While in comparison re CBS cabra , it was quite messy and hapzard in places. We used to have a pig sty allied with ramshackled shed standing next door to an old garage. Fun times we had down there.
Majority of the nuns were kind and decent. However if you get a ruthless dictator nun who was an Abbess in 1st school as she was only 33 to 35 age at that time. She ruled the roost and ran an iron fist over everything. All too nice and decent nuns were afraid of her as they couldn’t shaft her cos they were too nice and kind. We had two quite ruthless nuns more like a man running that school. It took some 15 years to shaft her out at last by going over her head to top Abbess in Belgium where their order was based. All it takes a hard nosed one to report her as I’m grateful to that person cos it was ‘hell’ school for all of us.
She was never again a superior or an Abbess after that as she was sent back to her home county – Tyrone. I found out more in later years about her re her brother who worked in RUC, mother of all places especially for any Catholics.
In fact, they were the wealthiest religious order as I was told by a solicitor. They had various properties in London and Belgium.
What i couldn’t understand was that mc quaid picked that order to run a deaf school with no child care qualifications. Imagine a nun running young boys boarding school nowadays that would be practically out of order. Couldnt understand how mc quaid made a poor decision regarding which to choose a nun order to run it.

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Daly left a trust fund for James.

It was administered by Eddie Donnelly (no relation) PP St Brigids Belfast.

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The Archbishop of Birmingham personally wrote to me, and those others who had been traumatised, to confirm Joe Quigley’s laicisation.

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This statement from the Roman Catholic Archdioceses of Birmingham 2012.
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham has worked closely with the police throughout this case and we shall continue to do so.
I wish to make clear that Bede Walsh has not been in active Roman Catholic ministry as a Roman Catholic priest since 2004, before any of the allegations associated with this conviction were made.
Because of the seriousness of the sexual offences committed by Bede Walsh, I will begin immediately the process of Iaicisation, which will lead to his removal from the clerical.
He was jailed for 22 years starting March 2012
.SAFEGUARDING
Statement on Bede Walsh
Wednesday, February 8th, 2012 @ 10:50 am

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Walsh should be out the next month – don’t they usually do half of their prison sentence if they have behaved?

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Why did Cahal Daly change his name from Charles to Cahal?

Daly’s manoeuvre with James was deeply manipulative and clearly motivated by his homosexuality masquerading as liberating an orphan etc.

This droit du signeur is prevalent in the Catholic Church – private secretaries (Longley), valets (Daly), bodyguards (Paul VI). – it’s dishonest and to use clerical speak ‘intrinsically disordered’ because it is motivated by self interest and repressed homosexuality- but of course this kind of dishonesty and hypocrisy fuels so much of clerical life.

I knew Daly I was struck by three things: his irritability, his sense of his own importance and how small he was (small man syndrome).

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Does anyone in Birmingham know what’s happened to the Sower magazine? Jokingly referred to by in the diocese as the Sewer.

I sense not all is well in Birmingham- they must be facing heavy litigation- the child abuse epicentre of the Catholic Church in the UK.

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Dalys name change at 59 yrs old is fascinating and intriguing- presumably something about to do with Gaelic (Gay Lick?) and reflects a certain angst or inner conflict.
A raging control freak and huge small man syndrome. He despised the IRA but refused to excommunicate etc which was the right decision.
So many cardinals are gay aren’t they and either deeply repressed or like Daly figure out a valve – James clearly fulfilled something in Daly and v likely vice versa.

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Interesting piece on yesterday irish Independent re Liam Brady and Bro Loughran.

Late Bro Loughran was then a superior in Cabra after he left o Connell’s school in Dublin.

He was in Cabra before in early 1960s as I was told by ex past pupils of his physical beatings.

Then he came back as a superior which he didn’t last long. He was fair to me but not others.

He covered up a lot or abuses going on but he was fair in a way by sacking a lay care staff abusing deaf boys. It was only years later that I learned that lay care staff was placed on sex offenders registered list.

The point was that he did sack lay staff but not his CBS staff. He was a mathematics teacher as he taught me maths just for a day when a male teacher went off sick.

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Pat, you say that you have met “wicked, aggressive, and violent nuns – nuns from Hell” in your childhood. I have met many nuns in my life and have to say the majority of those that I have met were beautiful caring women who had nothing but the interest of those that came into their path. Many people I know will tell you that different nuns made them the person they are today. While I have met some nuns like you have as well, I could literally count them on the fingers of one hand. Comments you make today about nuns does serious damage to the names of the thousands of good nuns out there. Yes there is a bad apple in every box, but for every bad one you find there are hundreds of good ones.

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I have to agree with your comment. I was a secondary school boarder in a convent run by the sisters of mercy and in my whole time there I could say nothing bad about the majority of the nuns. Out of all who taught me there was only one who I didnt like but thankfully i had her for just three months. There are a lot of good religious people out there be it clergy, nuns etc. All should not be tarred with the same brush. Just telling as it is.

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1.33: Similarly in my life since the 1950’s. All religious sisters except a small, unhappy few, which I and my family encountered were very kind and caring sisters. Somehow when it comes to Catholic personnel in Pat’s life, he seems to have been “unfortunate” or “hellishly treated”! It’s regrettable that he will slap the one label on everyone because he met “one from hell.” All my family and I can vouch for 1000’s of others who are grateful for the wonderful education we received from the nuns. We will be forever grateful for their kindness to my mother after the death of my father at a young age. Some of the crueĺties, emotional and mental which I recall were from lay teachers. A very good religious sister died recently and the condolences messages are amazing. She’s not the only religious who has been acknowledged likewise for their brilliance. Let’s be fair and just about the vast, vast majority of religious sisters. Presently we have 8 religious in our parish – all in their 80’s – retired missionaries, nurses and teachers – but who still work by visiting the many sick and housebound and are involved in various ministries. God bless all of them. Credit where credit is due.

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‘Your experience isn’t representative ‘. My cathbot excuses bingo card is filling up like nobody’s business! ❌
Isn’t anyone going to say ‘People might listen if you said it in a way acceptable to us’ and give me a whole row?

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3:05 the nuns are doing an excellent job in your area assisting with the MIA clergy etc.

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1.30pm

Ah I see but doesn’t explain why given they say it was so well received – it isn’t even available on line which is strange and just to knock it on the head.
Most diocesan things are basically the powers that be saying how marvellous everything whereas the clergy on the front line like me know that’s just bollox.
I’d say it’s all about cutting costs but maybe they should shed more scalps they sure are paying out plenty in salaries – ah well it will come Little Bobby Byrne used to put it about that Brum would be the first to make swathes redundant- give it time my dear I used to say to him and look at him now he’s the one whose redundant – oh life is such a bitch isn’t it.

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1:57 You’ve actually said why!
You comment how diocesan publications are the powers that be saying everything is marvellous, so obviously Birmingham diocesan powers that be are going to say the Sower was well received aren’t they?
They’re not going to publish a bit saying ‘Weve had to stop publishing the expensive, outdated diocesan magazine, which gave information already available on the internet and social media, because the only people who thought it was wonderful are the ever-falling number of fools who still think we’re a going concern and have their tongue up the archbishop’s backside’, now are they? 😂

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3.32: Could you rewrite your comment a little more cogently and legibly? From the small but I understand, I can say too that “your” comment isn’t representative either!!!

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Nazareth house sisters were always good to Irish seminarians. They offered summer work and accommodation in the different paces.. Hammersmith, Bexhil on Sea, Southend, Cardiff . Hammersmith was always handy – near the gay bars of Soho, a short hop on the tube. If those rooms the seminarians stayrd incould talk! A couple of deacons came a cropper in the late 90s early ’00s in London, they enjoyed their summer time a little too, much even bringing their boyfriends back to ‘Gaynooth’ for sleepovers. I can think of at least three deacons of that time all on class pieces but never ordained who ‘really enjoyed’ their Nazareth house experiences. 2001 a good example..

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Pat, did you not ask James WHY Daly took him to live with him at 16 years of age? Surely, the journalist in you would have wanted to know?

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I took James out for meals and drinks and visited him at home and in hospital. He trusted me. I never used the occasions to get information.

When I knew him he was vulnerable.

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Fair play to you. You’re a good man and TRUE priest.

One more question : was James learning disabled, or of low intelligence?

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I certainly try. I never say anything I believe to be untrue.

If someone asked me if they were beautiful – and they were not – I would not want to hurt them 😀

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I would like to clarify a point and that is that the ‘sisters’ were not ‘nuns’ as described. There is a church difference between a ‘nun’ and a ‘sister’. Nuns were enclosed and usually took a 4th vow. Even journalists get it wrong.

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2.58pm
Easy Tiger I was only asking; just a gentle enquiry on a slow Friday afternoon as I prepare my homily for Sunday.
What tge real reason is my question – a diocese an magazine one day here, then gone the next makes you think what’s really going on?
It’s like one day Brum had a CEO called David Brooks the next he’s gone replaced by some Dutch bloke or one day Eddie Clare is the Director of Maryvale the next he’s living in France – people think the clergy know the answer to such mysteries but we’re like everyone else fed some shite from Head Office.
Whereas on this blog you’re more likely to learn the real reason behind an anodyne story.

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3:21 Purr purr. 🐈
And I think you’d agree that when people keep disappearing it makes you wonder what’s going on when anything disappears.
This is a little documented effect of the abuse scandal, it messes with everyone’s heads so we either question everything or (as often happens on this blog) get really really defensive.
If a priest just vanished from ministry in, say, 1970 I think people would have assumed he was ill and wished him well. The fact we would now assume he’s an axe murderer is entirely the fault of the bishops.

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@4:12 pm I am sorry to say that you are wrong about that. His chauffeur was not ordained. Of that I am certain because I know the servant to whom you refer. Please do not spread falshoods. For one thing, it would save me having to correct you.

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6.54
He was ordained. Ask Diarmuid Martin. Did it not occur to you Daly must have had more than one chaffeur?

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As a seminarian in ‘The Wing’, I would spend most Saturday afternoons taking out for treats some of the children in Nazareth Lodge; usually, it was a visit to the public swimming pool at Castlereagh.
The sister in charge of my lot, Michael, was a lovely, kind-hearted woman. She was run ragged at times by the children, if the truth be told, because they could be quite a handful; but she never once lost her temper; never snapped at them. And I marvelled at that. Nor did I believe that she was reining in her emotions because I was there. In fact, I formed the impression that the children took advantage of her good nature and tested her patience by pushing boundaries. I suppose it was a backhanded compliment: the youngsters felt comfortable enough in her presence to be mischievious.
It’s important to pay tribute to the good eggs, as well as denouncing the bad.

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As with women in secular life, there were the good, the bad, and the ugly, some nuns were kind, other bullies, or had superiority complex, or cruel, on reflection no doubt, some had psychiatric conditions.
We had one called Dolorosa, who was an absolute demon, I didn’t suffer from her temper, but it was just a bad watching someone else get a fleecing, and being helpless to intervene.
They themselves were treated cruelly living in a closed secluded environment, it must have been very claustrophobic to expect intelligent women to live in those conditions, in their garden, they was an area set aside as a their burial site.
Teaching children of mixed ability, in large classes cannot have been much fun, with no teacher’s assistant in those days.
Having to wear all enveloping clothing, with an awful plastic forehead bandeau which use to dig into their skin, I often observed them trying to move it, from where it left a very obvious ridge across the forehead, long sleeved gowns all year around, no wonder they flew off the handle.
I can’t even begin to image the discomfort when those women went through the menopause, with only their hands and face exposed, no HRT in those days.
They probably suffered hugely in their own way, the Roman Catholic church used and, abused them, maybe the convent was an escape from their harsh family lives, a lot were farmer’s daughters who went from home to the novitiate.
They were good teachers, and many of us have to be grateful for their dedication.
They could be very spiteful, not at all shy in jeering at some unfortunate children, who had probably walked 3-4 miles to school in all weather, even as a very young child I knew this was very wrong.
At least we could go home at the end of the school day, they had to go back to their prison.

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4.43: There are good points in your narrative, Queenie. We must remember the strict disciplines and mortifications and self shaming rituals under which religious women particularly were trained and formed. Imagine, as you say, large numbers of women in small spaces, all at different intellectual, emotional and spiritual levels, trying to be civil and tolerant of one another. The sisters in the 30’s/40’s and 50’s received their formation in very controlled environments which weren’t always conducive to self development, harmony or affirmation. There were in some orders the “kitchen” sisters who were the housekeepers, cleaners and cooks, often having to take care of boarders late unto the nights. Nonetheless, the sisters generally were kind with some exceptions. Despite the abuse inflicted by some religious, we have greater reasons to be grateful for their contribution to health, education and social outreach.

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4.24pm
Precisely and exactly – bishops, the hierarchy treat us (everyone) like we’re fecking idiots – truth is there’s always a backstory behind sudden and superficialy explained disappearance whether that be a priest or a diocesan magazine – what’s really going on? I suspect with Brum that year on year substantial losses are taking their toll after the massive spending spree just before and during IICSA.
Loads of sick and retired clergy to feed and water and massive compensation down the pike.
Against a backdrop of everything is marvellous and ain’t we great.

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Brum is in a bad way. Yes, money is running short. But lots of other problems coming down the road. Oh, I bet Longley just wishes for retirement to speed its way towards him.

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4.16: A very fair and balanced comment, one that can be expressed about many, many religious women. I recall visiting the Nazareth Sisters, Mallow, as a student and what a lovely memory I have of very kind, dedicated sisters. We must acknowledge these good women. Always.

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Yup, that’s another one off my bingo card. ❌
I wonder if they actually keep these comments set up as text files and just copy and paste.

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I was told that an auxiliary bishop in the US obtained his position b/c he was an excellent chauffeur and bag carrier for his Ordinary. Actually he caused no harm and did good work confirming & ordaining.
Seems like a more common means of upward mobility than I thought.

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No, not dirt especially. But, he’s evidently got a problem getting himself so much publicity. He sort of picked the fight. Knew what he was doing. I think he’s trying to make himself out to be a bit of a martyr. Get a profile. Get noticed by Nursie. Although, I suspect he’s be getting a taking to by Walker the VG pretty soon. Give him a few years to settle down. He’s newly ordained. If he stays around. Lots of those Oscottians ‘discover’ themselves within the first five years of ordination, and make an escape. Usually with a beau. Watch that space.

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Quite a few years back I worked for a while with an ex-Sister of Nazareth who had been fully professed before realising the ‘true spirit’ and cruelty of the order and having done that, realised it was no place for her.
She had been in Belfast, Hammersmith, Glasgow and Newcastle among other places.
Her line to me then which didn’t mean that much was that if you ever heard anything bad about the order and their systematic cruelty to either children or older people in their care was that you should believe it, believe it was probably worse than the account given and never give the sisters the benefit of the doubt.
Some will say she was embittered by her experience but I never thought that. To work with she was professional, balanced and kind. She had simply walked away from evil and cruelty which she could not change from the inside and so dissociated herself from it in the only way she could.

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I was educated in St Michael’s in Belfast in the 90s and it was under the trusteeship of the Sisters of Nazareth. I was taught by some of Sisters of Nazareth in this school and I don’t have a negative word to say about these particular teachers. They could be strict but they were particularly kind and dedicated. They truly seemed to have a vocation for teaching. St Michael’s was on the grounds of Nazareth Lodge and we would go to the Chapel there occasionally for confession.
From the outside, it was a tall, austere, brooding Victorian monster that must have been so intimidating to any child being brought to its front door. I remember thinking it was warm and homely on the inside, a contrast to the Dickensian exterior.
I remember how some of the children resident in Nazareth and St Joseph’s could be. Some (not all) were very maladjusted and aggressive. They were prone to petty crime. I remember them drinking on the roof of St Joseph’s, burning trees in the Ormeau Park, robbing bikes and threatening kids from the neighbourhood. I remember one boy aiming a brick at my head. It’s understandable how problematic their behaviour could be, given that they most likely ended up in care due to unstable and chaotic family lives.
I now often wonder how the sisters coped. I know that in the 90s, there were 3 groups of children in different sections of the home, each headed by a sister who would have to live with this group morning, noon and night. To me it sounds like a hellish existence. I don’t think it’s right that anyone should have been given such a role, and I think it’s probably what led to such abuse being meted out. I’m not aiming to justify what they did, but it could give some rationale for the slew of complaints that have come out of this home. The poor children from Nazareth were so stigmatised. They would get blamed for so much in our neighbourhood. My own mother used to threaten me with ‘the home’ if I was acting out.
With regards to this particular case, I know who the person seeking damages is. I remember him. I know that his behaviour was problematic and he was expelled from his secondary school. I also know that he really didn’t have it easy. Some of the details of this case, I have heard over the years. I know the name of the sister involved. I’d heard different stories involving her, some of which were mentioned in this article. In later years, I spoke to a woman who had worked in Nazareth, who described this particular sister as a ‘bitch’, not for her treatment towards the children (perhaps this lady wasn’t aware of that) but for how she would speak to members of staff. It seems like she was not suited to work with children, particularly ones who would have had such complex needs.
She was eventually removed from her post due to alarming allegations regarding this boy and some others, the group which she headed was split up and Nazareth later went into a process of scaling back before it was closed and demolished in 1999.
While I believe that their mission to help destitute or orphaned children was undertaken with the best of intentions, it’s undeniable that in its operation, there have been many failures on the part of the Sisters of Nazareth and the social services by association to ensure the emotional wellbeing of these children.

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