Salvator Publishing publishes Sister Mary Lembo's book Religieuses abusées en Afrique - Faire la Vérité, Abused Nuns in Africa, an unprecedented study of abuses committed by Sisters of Africa. priests over nuns in Africa.
Sister Mary Lembo, Togo of the Order of Saint Caarina of Alexandria. She is a trainer for religious houses and seminaries, and she is also a therapist. In 2019 she defended her thesis at the Gregorian University of Rome and in 2021 she received the 2021 Lubac Prize for this special thesis.
In November 2021, she gave an intervention at the general assembly of French monks and nuns meeting in Lourdes. She will be in Paris from 10 to 12 October for the release of this book.
In the book, which comes from her brilliantly defended doctoral thesis at the Gregorian University of Rome in 2019, Sister Mary Lembo dared to address the issue of abuse by nuns who are victims of priests in Africa. .
The choice of this topic comes from situations encountered in the field when initially performing a training mission. This study, part of an interdisciplinary theoretical approach to the psychology and anthropology of the Christian vocation, is based on field surveys (qualitative methodology) conducted in four countries.
West Africa and one in East Africa with consecrated women and young girls in training for the consecrated life.
Based on their testimonies, Sister Mary Lembo deciphers the mechanisms that lead to abuse in the particular context of their pastoral collaboration with priests.
Data collection, analysis, and interpretation aims to better prevent these abuses (particularly by promoting adequate prevention and accompaniment training for consecrated women, priests, seminarians and young women in formation) and to heal “a colossal wound that undermines missionary cooperation.”
Translated by Marta An Nguyen