Expelled For Protesting Against Rape Accused Bishop, Sr Lucy Pens A Tell-All Autobiography Detailing Sexual Abuses In The Church

The Catholic Church in Kerala, which was left in a massive controversy last year following the rape allegation against a Bishop and the alleged cover-up of it by the church authorities is set for more embarrassment.

This after Sister Lucy Kalapura, a nun who was recently expelled from her the Franciscan Clarist Congregation (FCC) congregation for speaking up against the accused Bishop and siding with the nun who made the rape complaint released her autobiography.

The book, titled ¡®Karthavinte Namathil¡¯ (In the Name of Christ), was released on Saturday and all the 3000 copies were sold out within a few hours.

It is a bare-all autobiography which details about the rampant sexual abuses by priests.

In her book, she alleged that during her life as a nun she has faced attempts of sexual abuse four times from priests.

The priests had arrived at the sisters¡¯ convent as visitors when they tried to molest her. Another potential scandalous allegation Lucy, who was until recently a teacher at the church-run Sacred Heart School in Wayand has made in the book is about a nun living in the convent giving birth. The priest responsible for the pregnancy was protected by the church.

She also alleged that Father Robin Vadakumcherry, a now excommunicated priest who is serving a double-life term for impregnating a minor girl in Kottiyoor of Kannur, while he was serving as the manager of a school there had relationships with several nuns.

In the book, she also alleged that she was aware of incidents where priests had forced nuns to strip and watch them naked for hours. She also alleged that several young nuns were sexually abused by their superiors in the convent. The 52-year-old who has now become one of the fiercest critics of the church argued that the Church should allow nuns and priests to get married if they wish to lead a life together.

Lucy, who was a nun for around 35 years faced the ire of the church and convent authorities last year after she along with some other nuns took part in the protests demanding action against Franco Mulakkal, the then Bishop of Jalandhar. The church authorities, however, saw her actions as 'indiscipline' and expelled her from the covenant. She had filed an appeal against the convent's decision in the Vatican, which was also turned down.

Karthavinte Namathil is not the first time a nun has spoken about the sexual abuses by priests. In 2009, Sister Jesme, the former vice-principal of the church-run Vimala College in Thrissur had published her book Amen: The Autobiography of a Nun which in detail spoke about the sexual exploitation of nuns by priests. Like Lucy, Sister Jesme was also forced to leave the convent after living like a nun for 33 years.