KOCHI: Is this how the Church is planning to punish the supporters? Several questions have risen with the Church taking action against Sr Lucy Kalapura and Bar Yuhanon Ramban, who have participated in the protest of the nuns demanding the arrest of former Bishop Franco Mulakkal.
Lucy, a member of the Franciscan Clarist Congregation residing at Karakkal Convent under the Mananthavady diocese of the Syro Malabar Church, had announced her solidarity with the nuns staging a protest demanding the arrest of Franco. According to sources, she was restricted orally by the Church authorities through the Mother Superior from performing her duties on Sunday.
“A nun has her rights to express her feelings and it is her freedom, the Church cannot keep her away from expressing them,” said Sr Anupama, one of the five nuns who protested. “Sr Lucy has joined us knowing it is her choice. She thought of it as a right thing to do by supporting us. If action is taken against her for supporting us then we will all stand by her, supporting her,” she said.
The Church is taking revenge on the nuns who have expressed their solidarity with the protest. “The action taken against the nun was expected by the people. This is the first step by the Church to silence their entire community from expressing their freedom. By this action, the authorities want to suppress them from coming to the forefront in the future,” said Fr Augustine Vattoly, convenor, Save Our Sisters (SOS) Action Council.
Meanwhile, the action taken against Bar Yuhanon Ramban of the Jacobite Syrian Church, who participated in the protest of the nuns announcing his solidarity with them, is shocking, said Fr Peter Ellimootil Corepiscopa. “It has been a shocking action by the Church. This has been a great step in the history of Catholic Church, surely it will have its impact on others as well. With all the incidents that are happening, this is what we understand,” he said.