KOCHI: For Philomina Mathew, 56, it was a sheer thought of humanity that shook her conscience for not being part of the historic nuns’ protest that has been gaining momentum in front of the High Court here seeking the arrest of Jalandhar Bishop Franco Mullakal for allegedly raping a nun. It was then that the housewife from Varapetty, a village in Kothamangalam, decided to travel 50 km to the protest venue on Monday and express solidarity with the nuns.
“Though I knew about the strike, I was unaware of the details that led to the protest. On Saturday I spotted my husband’s picture while glancing through the newspaper. That was him from the venue of protest! This prompted me to sift through all the news that had appeared,” she said.
Quite unlike the previous days, Day 10 of the nuns’ protest got a positive twist with ordinary housewives from far and near thronging the protest venue.
Although the faithful within the Catholic order were aware of the spate of sexual allegations involving their clergy at different point of time, they were not ready to chew the case that assumed new dimensions with the nuns themselves taking to the streets, said Latha J, another homemaker from Kothamangalam, who vows to be with the nuns till justice is delivered. “In many parts, the number of people coming for the holy mass has reduced considerably,” she said.
Most of laity at the venue echoed Latha’s sentiments and agreed to the fact that many are losing faith in the establishment with such recurring incidents.“Jessy, one of my relatives after completing her Class XII joined the church to become a nun, but we are scared about her future. So, we asked her to return home,” said Antony P V, Philomina’s husband.