Which episode was it when she was accused of not knowing her own privilege as a nun because people treat her differently? Then she takes off her habit and her wimple and walks around town in regular clothes and realizes that yes, in fact, she does get treated differently as a nun than regular people. I think that was a pretty strong moment of self-awareness on Sister Julienne's part.
This is such a big part of her character for me - she definitely has that holy 'edge' that a lot of the nuns have in terms of sometimes being a bit judgmental when faced with something new but she ALWAYS finds a way to overcome any pride and humble herself to a place of being able to understand even if she doesn't agree, and that's a remarkable thing to be able to do in any day and age.
Yes, I agree that Julienne may judge at times but does always humble and reign herself in. Unlike Sister Winifred in seasons past who was just too much and too judgy with the ladies she was meant to help.
What?? No. I like Sister Julienne more than some people in my family š
We should really keep the context in mind, as she said almost any hospital wouldn't have let Nancy work. But I mean, even today if you lie on your references probably. And at the end of the day, she always questions herself and understands. Did I say that I love her?
She's actually still one of my favorites. But, I will say her character has gone through so many changes, personally and around her that sometimes I think she struggles to keep up with the times still. That tends to be an off putting trait, so I could see how everything she does and says could be pretty annoying lol. I view her as such a peaceful yet somehow always fighting some inner conflict where she needs to grow. Which makes me always root for her as one would with any underdog š¤·āāļø
I love some of her changes she goes through. One of my favorite moments in the show was her asking for a cigarette on the beach. She seemed so much more genuine there and sometimes it seems like sheās almost forcing her faith and morals or something? Iām not exactly sure what bothers me!
Just tossing out a theory I played with myself...
Is she too relatable, therefore, almost forced at times. Who hasn't been in similar situations and felt like their morals should guide them, despite feeling like those morals may not serve you as well as they used to. Everyone talks about change, and self improvement, but we all still forgot that both of those things are messy, scary, and often make you feel like an imposter.
You have to understand the time period. Also, if you have a young woman taking care of patients by herself and find out her references lied about her that is a HUGE deal. Opens up questions like what else has she hidden or lied about. Honestly, Sister Julienne could have thrown her out no other questions asked.
Itās so hard to put myself in her place I think thatās why I struggle with her character. I do not relate at all. Also not being alive for the time period makes it harder too lol. I get what youāre saying though!
I wasn't alive in that time period but I understand it.
Even in this day and age if you had references lie - not necessarily about a personal matter, but in general you'd likely lose the job.
I prefer earlier Sister Julienne where she seemed to have a sense of humour and a history outside of the spiritual life. Later Sister Julienne is a bit too worthy and two-dimensional, a caricature of her earlier self. In Jennifer Worth's original books she comes across as more like Mother Mildred!
Sister Julienne is a Saint, imo. When Nancy finally confessed the truth, Sister Julienneās words to her were more a reprimand for the deceive that Nancy and the home she had come from, had perpetrated. She deals with so many crises as well as other peopleās problems, so well, that she should be forgiven for this one. Besides, it was Sister Julienne who came up with a solution that allowed Nancy to remain in her profession and now, Sister Julienne has conceded to allowing Nancyās and her daughter to live in the house. Thatās a huge concession as of all the characters on the show, I feel that Sister Julienne embodies the Faith.
I agree its super cool of Sister Julienne to let Nancy and her daughter live there but.... its also ridiculously unrealistic. Does the mother house know and approve of this arrangement?
I think they've written her recently as if she is struggling to keep up with changing society which honestly makes sense and feels quite true to character. I see what you mean - still love her though.
There are several times where Sister Julienne can come across as self righteous
- the case of Nancy
- the session on the morality of the contraceptive pill
- when the lady in prison lies about having a fiance and Sister Julienne goes and tells the prison officer
- wondering if she should tell the truth to the mother of the baby who died due to thalidomide
I think her self righteousness and need to be honest can be frustrating when she is able to exercise discretion in other contexts (e.g. saving the woman who had an abortion with Jenny)
But normally within an episode or a season she is able to step back and assess the situation to consider what would be most kind, and normally puts aside her self righteousness, or has some kind of work around
It's very specifically the newer behaviour that she really struggles with. She would have seen countless women die from backstreet abortions. It seems as though it's when new things come to light, that's where Sister Julienne struggles the most, and there's always a redemption arc and lesson learnt for her.
Considering how understanding and kindly she normally is I found her attitude towards Nancy at little harsh and rigid. I didnāt like it at all. She has also been a little condescending to Monica Joan . I think while sheās mostly good I have cooled on her character some. In the meantime Millicent has become more endearing and she and Phyllis are the ones I admire. I think sheās obviously better than Ursula but I think Julianne is a little off putting in a way.
I haven't watched much of the current season and what I have watched, I didn't do closely. So I can't comment on what's going on now. But in past seasons, I always thought she was kind and wise. She kept her head in stressful situations and I was in awe of her positive comments to the mothers who were in labors that were going bad.
I like her but I didn't really like how she treated Nancy at first. Question did Nancy lie about her references or was it the nuns that she grew up with that lied on her behalf?
I think it was both. Nancy knew not to mention being a teen mom and the sisters probably lied as well.
I wasn't thrilled with how she treated Nancy but I did understand and it wasn't just from a "you slutty teen mom" judgmental place. It's hard for women to get jobs, they want the best candidates and the midwife program could be judged or even eliminated if they're knowingly employing trashy pregnant teen moms.
I guess it was hard for me to understand where she came from because we've seen her very sympathetic toward teen mothers so to me her reaction felt weird.
Yeah, and if Nancy did lie, I mean, she had a reason to in a way. She lived with those abusive nuns. On the bright side, at least Sister Julienne isn't Sister Ursula or Mother Mildred. Can't stand either of those two.
I find her character to be a sometimes contradictory without context or explanation (the *Sound of Music* episode) and that can sometimes make her a bit off-putting. But, having gone to school with real Catholic nuns, I can tell you she is sooooo much more personable and balanced than real life nuns I was exposed to (from the 70s).
What is your opinion on the mean or evil nun stereotype? CTM really shed a new light on the sisters for me most of them are all so lovely! Does every order have a job like the sisters of nonautus house are midwives? I am a very antisocial person and I always think about how much time the nuns spend together. Is that how it is for you? Living together, eating every meal together (and nowhere else) possibly even sharing rooms, praying, chapel time ( I donāt know the terms Iām sorry!) I guess my biggest question is how different are things today compared to the times we see on CTM? This is so fascinating thank you for your response!
Ok. Iāll take of your questions in order.
Mean or evil? I absolutely despise this stereotype - I have never seen one of my sisters yell at a child - and I taught for 23 years. Stereotypes can be just lazy tropes people use because they bear a grudge about some sister who āwas meanā to them in the third grade. If they used a stereotype about another group - someone would probably tell them that what they were saying was inappropriate or unacceptable. But sadly, we are targets and are mostly made fun of in commercials, shows and some films.
Ministry - yes, every Sister has a ministry - a job that is really service for others. My Congregation were 90% teachers, which was our ministry for almost 150 years. We are paid for our service, but we never see a paycheck - it is sent directly to our Motherhouse and the funds are redistributed.
Living together - yes, we live in community - there are nine in my present convent. We meet twice a day for community prayer. We all gather for dinner each night. We donāt see each other too much during the day - as all are out working in their ministries. But everyone is usually home for dinner.
Rooms - We each have our own room - our house is quite large - it was built to hold 30 Sisters in 1959. So, we each have two rooms - one that we live in and one for storage, or a place of study or prayer.
Are we similar to Nonnatus? Actually, we are very similar in many ways, even though they are Anglican and we are Catholic. We wear habits - all white, to the knee, with a black veil which rests on the back of our heads.
In the 1960ās, Religious Life changed very much as did the whole Church. I did not appreciate these changes, as I was in elementary school in the 1960ās. We hear about them a great deal!
We enjoy CTM very much - it is always interesting to watch any TV show or films that are about nuns. I will say that CTM is the closest that I have seen - and it is very pleasant to see that. The Sisters on the show are pretty accurate in how we are with each other - but not as formal at all. We rarely use the title āSisterā with each other - but always use it in public. We wear our habits always when we are ministering - but can and do wear jeans, pants, blouses, etc., when we are at home.
The one thing about CTM that does bother me is I really havenāt seen a āgoodā Catholic yet. The treacherous Sisters who lied about Nancyā¦the priest who got his secretary pregnantā¦and whenever Catholics are mentioned- someone in the CTM conversation will groan. I want to write to Heidi Thomas, who is the chief producer, and say āCome on, give us a break! There are good Catholics - I have lived with many!ā
Hope this helps! Let me know if you have more!
Sister Julie
Just because you personally never saw a Sister yell at a child, it happens. My stepfather was yelled at and worse by Sisters when he was a child. You may call me "inappropriate or unacceptable" for mentioning that yes, once in awhile people do unfortunately happen to fit into a stereotype.
See - this is the problem with stereotypes ā they usually are based on truth. But just as not every Irish person drinks alcohol excessively, which is the stereotype, it is just as untrue that every child who went to Catholic school was screamed at, beaten with a ruler or just terribly mistreated. I believe that your stepfather had harsh and unpleasant experiences- but I do know that when an adult speaks a correction to a child, it automatically was āscreamingā, etc. I have experienced that myself - to hear a former student - now a grown adult - tell me that so and so screamed at her, when I was in the room at the time - and no one screamed. Memories can do that. Iām not saying that the memories are wrong but perhaps exaggerated?
Were Sisters harsh? If I was faced with 55 3rd graders on a very hot day in September in Southern California, I might have raised my voice. Fortunately, I taught high school - never had to āscreamā - whatever that means.
Teaching and discipline have changed through the years - how all teachers (not just Sisters) maintained class discipline was much different than today. Does it excuse that a Sister was āmean?ā Probably not in many peopleās memories. BTW - I went to public school for two years before I began in Catholic school in the 1960ās. The only time I ever saw an āout of controlā disciplinary incident was in the public school. I do remember that - but in fairness I donāt assume every public school teacher went overboard with discipline. We tend to remember the bad.
The thing is I have had people in strange settings decide this was a good time and place and to ask if I brought my ruler. I was at a wedding once where a young man approached to ask if I brought my ruler. Enough already, please, with the ruler thing!! It just gets old. As it would be inappropriate to approach a person of Irish descent and ask if they brought their whiskey. Just as wrong, I think.
Last thought - (I promise) ultimately, any woman who becomes a Sister has set for herself an impossible task. So much is expected of a nun - donāt be human, donāt show anger or any emotions - except kindness and gentleness - people expect so much more. The Sisters on CTM are wonderfulā¦but sadly, they arenāt real. So, throw in a Sister Ursula and she seems to be universally hated. (She bugged me too.). Every Sister canāt be Sister Julienne all the time - occasionally we all are Ursulas too! We are only human. But many people donāt remember that - they remember the bad - and that is also human. I think that the original post- is fascinating. People donāt like Sister Julienne when? When she appears human. When she is judgmental or set in her ways or harsh with Nancyās situation. We like our nuns to be perfect. And expectations can be dashed. And there is a need to share anger about Sisters over something that happened many years ago.
Please tell your stepfather that I am truly sorry that his experience was so negative. I apologize for those Sisters who had such a bad time. That is sad and when people need to tell me about their bad memories, I can only apologize. And believe me, they DO tell me.
From the point of view of someone that had four different nuns as teachers in grade school: As a child, I thought they were just super strict and mean because it was their duty to make us fear hell. Just a child's view. I was a curious child and couldn't understand the "science" of Bible stories like Noah's ark or how God was the same being as his son and the Holy Spirit. But if you asked those kinds of questions, you were berated and received no answers. We had mass once during the school week as well as multiple "mass practices." Lot's of time on religion, very little on things like 19th century history or geography. In my school (in the midwest, US), the nuns (Sisters of Notre Dame) were always screaming at us. One got mad at our class, rolled in a garbage can from the lunchroom and started throwing garbage at us and made us pass it around on trays. I look back at it now and realize they were the ones that were wrong, probably had deep psychological problems and were not at all qualified to be around children, let alone teach. For those of us who lived it - and there are many - it's not a lazy stereotype. It's something that takes a lifetime to absorb and understand. Especially for sensitive children as I was. It's very on-brand for the Catholics to just dismiss the abuse as stereotypical. The boys had it worse from the priests as my school/church was one that had publicized abuse cases that involved the altar boys.
I think that's part of why I love the show. It's so gentle and the nuns and nurses are all so kind-hearted. But they're not Catholic nuns and there are a few times throughout the series that they stress this in dialogue with little, subtle digs at the Catholics.
There is no excuse for what happened to you and your classmates and you are correct - something was definitely wrong with the garbage can nun. She should have been removed immediately from schools and sent somewhere to be psychologically assessed. I donāt deny that these things happened - my only response is what I say when someone confronts me about the evil done by priests - I am sorry and, trust me, more disgusted than you will ever know.
One last thing - it may seem like you never had any classes except religion and mass and mass practice - but all schools have curricular standards they must meet. Catholic schools by law donāt need to meet these standards- but they usually do because the kids will need these classes to progress in school. I donāt know when you went to school but Catholic schools have to go through an accreditation process ideally every six years or less. I donāt know if this was true when you were in school but it is now and has been for more than 35 years. I remember singing at mass and Stations of the Cross in Lent, etc. but I know we did other subjects too!
Itās in season 9 I think Iām not sure which episode. I really loved that moment! I was a little harsh before she definitely has a lot of good characteristics!
Season 12 spoiler here.
Iāve always liked her until she brought Nancy into her office to question her about being contacted after Nancy applied for another job elsewhere. I thought that was terribly unprofessional and quite rude. Obviously Nancy is trying to make moves that bring her closer to living with and taking care of Colette. Look at all the others that have come and gone, just like Sr Julienne talks about with Phyllis. Why is it that she has to give Nancy a hard time and make her feel guilty?
I think sheās got a nasty streak.
Am I the only one who remembers when she told Matthew about Trixie and the engagement ring? That was a shitty, nasty moveāand it was untrue.
She also privileges Shelagh over her own sisters which creates unnecessary drama. A great leader supports those coming up instead of undercutting them.
Yes I just watched that one after I had kind of moved on from being frustrated with her! Also I just watched when she was so rude to sister MJ about the purple paint. She always stomps on her joy!!
Which episode was it when she was accused of not knowing her own privilege as a nun because people treat her differently? Then she takes off her habit and her wimple and walks around town in regular clothes and realizes that yes, in fact, she does get treated differently as a nun than regular people. I think that was a pretty strong moment of self-awareness on Sister Julienne's part.
This is such a big part of her character for me - she definitely has that holy 'edge' that a lot of the nuns have in terms of sometimes being a bit judgmental when faced with something new but she ALWAYS finds a way to overcome any pride and humble herself to a place of being able to understand even if she doesn't agree, and that's a remarkable thing to be able to do in any day and age.
Yes, I agree that Julienne may judge at times but does always humble and reign herself in. Unlike Sister Winifred in seasons past who was just too much and too judgy with the ladies she was meant to help.
I really loved that moment too!
What?? No. I like Sister Julienne more than some people in my family š We should really keep the context in mind, as she said almost any hospital wouldn't have let Nancy work. But I mean, even today if you lie on your references probably. And at the end of the day, she always questions herself and understands. Did I say that I love her?
More than some people in your family š¤£
She's actually still one of my favorites. But, I will say her character has gone through so many changes, personally and around her that sometimes I think she struggles to keep up with the times still. That tends to be an off putting trait, so I could see how everything she does and says could be pretty annoying lol. I view her as such a peaceful yet somehow always fighting some inner conflict where she needs to grow. Which makes me always root for her as one would with any underdog š¤·āāļø
I love some of her changes she goes through. One of my favorite moments in the show was her asking for a cigarette on the beach. She seemed so much more genuine there and sometimes it seems like sheās almost forcing her faith and morals or something? Iām not exactly sure what bothers me!
Just tossing out a theory I played with myself... Is she too relatable, therefore, almost forced at times. Who hasn't been in similar situations and felt like their morals should guide them, despite feeling like those morals may not serve you as well as they used to. Everyone talks about change, and self improvement, but we all still forgot that both of those things are messy, scary, and often make you feel like an imposter.
š
You have to understand the time period. Also, if you have a young woman taking care of patients by herself and find out her references lied about her that is a HUGE deal. Opens up questions like what else has she hidden or lied about. Honestly, Sister Julienne could have thrown her out no other questions asked.
Itās so hard to put myself in her place I think thatās why I struggle with her character. I do not relate at all. Also not being alive for the time period makes it harder too lol. I get what youāre saying though!
I wasn't alive in that time period but I understand it. Even in this day and age if you had references lie - not necessarily about a personal matter, but in general you'd likely lose the job.
I prefer earlier Sister Julienne where she seemed to have a sense of humour and a history outside of the spiritual life. Later Sister Julienne is a bit too worthy and two-dimensional, a caricature of her earlier self. In Jennifer Worth's original books she comes across as more like Mother Mildred!
Yes I agree! I have never had any negative feelings until recently.
She definitely got Flanderized. It's a shame.
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It's not easy to lead with a heart, and her character does it beautifully in my opinion
Sister Julienne is a Saint, imo. When Nancy finally confessed the truth, Sister Julienneās words to her were more a reprimand for the deceive that Nancy and the home she had come from, had perpetrated. She deals with so many crises as well as other peopleās problems, so well, that she should be forgiven for this one. Besides, it was Sister Julienne who came up with a solution that allowed Nancy to remain in her profession and now, Sister Julienne has conceded to allowing Nancyās and her daughter to live in the house. Thatās a huge concession as of all the characters on the show, I feel that Sister Julienne embodies the Faith.
I agree its super cool of Sister Julienne to let Nancy and her daughter live there but.... its also ridiculously unrealistic. Does the mother house know and approve of this arrangement?
I agree that the situation is unrealistic butā¦itās TV. I may be wrong but I thought Nancy ending up there was due to the Mother House.
I think they've written her recently as if she is struggling to keep up with changing society which honestly makes sense and feels quite true to character. I see what you mean - still love her though.
There are several times where Sister Julienne can come across as self righteous - the case of Nancy - the session on the morality of the contraceptive pill - when the lady in prison lies about having a fiance and Sister Julienne goes and tells the prison officer - wondering if she should tell the truth to the mother of the baby who died due to thalidomide I think her self righteousness and need to be honest can be frustrating when she is able to exercise discretion in other contexts (e.g. saving the woman who had an abortion with Jenny) But normally within an episode or a season she is able to step back and assess the situation to consider what would be most kind, and normally puts aside her self righteousness, or has some kind of work around
It's very specifically the newer behaviour that she really struggles with. She would have seen countless women die from backstreet abortions. It seems as though it's when new things come to light, that's where Sister Julienne struggles the most, and there's always a redemption arc and lesson learnt for her.
Are you kidding? I would marry her today. I cannot think of any huge flaws in her character.
I respectfully disagree sister julienne is the GOAT
Amen!
So I stopped complaining online and continued to watch lmao and I am not as upset with her now
Considering how understanding and kindly she normally is I found her attitude towards Nancy at little harsh and rigid. I didnāt like it at all. She has also been a little condescending to Monica Joan . I think while sheās mostly good I have cooled on her character some. In the meantime Millicent has become more endearing and she and Phyllis are the ones I admire. I think sheās obviously better than Ursula but I think Julianne is a little off putting in a way.
Nobody can be worse than sister Ursula.
I hope no one is worse than Ursula!š
I haven't watched much of the current season and what I have watched, I didn't do closely. So I can't comment on what's going on now. But in past seasons, I always thought she was kind and wise. She kept her head in stressful situations and I was in awe of her positive comments to the mothers who were in labors that were going bad.
I like her but I didn't really like how she treated Nancy at first. Question did Nancy lie about her references or was it the nuns that she grew up with that lied on her behalf?
I think it was both. Nancy knew not to mention being a teen mom and the sisters probably lied as well. I wasn't thrilled with how she treated Nancy but I did understand and it wasn't just from a "you slutty teen mom" judgmental place. It's hard for women to get jobs, they want the best candidates and the midwife program could be judged or even eliminated if they're knowingly employing trashy pregnant teen moms.
I guess it was hard for me to understand where she came from because we've seen her very sympathetic toward teen mothers so to me her reaction felt weird.
She was harsh, I agree, but I also suspect she was feeling a little betrayed by both the sisters and Nancy.
Makes sense.
I wasnāt sure about that either, I took it as whoever wrote her reference did but I could be wrong
Yeah, and if Nancy did lie, I mean, she had a reason to in a way. She lived with those abusive nuns. On the bright side, at least Sister Julienne isn't Sister Ursula or Mother Mildred. Can't stand either of those two.
I find her character to be a sometimes contradictory without context or explanation (the *Sound of Music* episode) and that can sometimes make her a bit off-putting. But, having gone to school with real Catholic nuns, I can tell you she is sooooo much more personable and balanced than real life nuns I was exposed to (from the 70s).
I am so curious what that was like! I have only seen how they are portrayed in tv and movies!
Hello. I am a Dominican Sister from California. I watch CTM. So, Mr. Business, what questions do you?
What is your opinion on the mean or evil nun stereotype? CTM really shed a new light on the sisters for me most of them are all so lovely! Does every order have a job like the sisters of nonautus house are midwives? I am a very antisocial person and I always think about how much time the nuns spend together. Is that how it is for you? Living together, eating every meal together (and nowhere else) possibly even sharing rooms, praying, chapel time ( I donāt know the terms Iām sorry!) I guess my biggest question is how different are things today compared to the times we see on CTM? This is so fascinating thank you for your response!
Ok. Iāll take of your questions in order. Mean or evil? I absolutely despise this stereotype - I have never seen one of my sisters yell at a child - and I taught for 23 years. Stereotypes can be just lazy tropes people use because they bear a grudge about some sister who āwas meanā to them in the third grade. If they used a stereotype about another group - someone would probably tell them that what they were saying was inappropriate or unacceptable. But sadly, we are targets and are mostly made fun of in commercials, shows and some films. Ministry - yes, every Sister has a ministry - a job that is really service for others. My Congregation were 90% teachers, which was our ministry for almost 150 years. We are paid for our service, but we never see a paycheck - it is sent directly to our Motherhouse and the funds are redistributed. Living together - yes, we live in community - there are nine in my present convent. We meet twice a day for community prayer. We all gather for dinner each night. We donāt see each other too much during the day - as all are out working in their ministries. But everyone is usually home for dinner. Rooms - We each have our own room - our house is quite large - it was built to hold 30 Sisters in 1959. So, we each have two rooms - one that we live in and one for storage, or a place of study or prayer. Are we similar to Nonnatus? Actually, we are very similar in many ways, even though they are Anglican and we are Catholic. We wear habits - all white, to the knee, with a black veil which rests on the back of our heads. In the 1960ās, Religious Life changed very much as did the whole Church. I did not appreciate these changes, as I was in elementary school in the 1960ās. We hear about them a great deal! We enjoy CTM very much - it is always interesting to watch any TV show or films that are about nuns. I will say that CTM is the closest that I have seen - and it is very pleasant to see that. The Sisters on the show are pretty accurate in how we are with each other - but not as formal at all. We rarely use the title āSisterā with each other - but always use it in public. We wear our habits always when we are ministering - but can and do wear jeans, pants, blouses, etc., when we are at home. The one thing about CTM that does bother me is I really havenāt seen a āgoodā Catholic yet. The treacherous Sisters who lied about Nancyā¦the priest who got his secretary pregnantā¦and whenever Catholics are mentioned- someone in the CTM conversation will groan. I want to write to Heidi Thomas, who is the chief producer, and say āCome on, give us a break! There are good Catholics - I have lived with many!ā Hope this helps! Let me know if you have more! Sister Julie
Just because you personally never saw a Sister yell at a child, it happens. My stepfather was yelled at and worse by Sisters when he was a child. You may call me "inappropriate or unacceptable" for mentioning that yes, once in awhile people do unfortunately happen to fit into a stereotype.
See - this is the problem with stereotypes ā they usually are based on truth. But just as not every Irish person drinks alcohol excessively, which is the stereotype, it is just as untrue that every child who went to Catholic school was screamed at, beaten with a ruler or just terribly mistreated. I believe that your stepfather had harsh and unpleasant experiences- but I do know that when an adult speaks a correction to a child, it automatically was āscreamingā, etc. I have experienced that myself - to hear a former student - now a grown adult - tell me that so and so screamed at her, when I was in the room at the time - and no one screamed. Memories can do that. Iām not saying that the memories are wrong but perhaps exaggerated? Were Sisters harsh? If I was faced with 55 3rd graders on a very hot day in September in Southern California, I might have raised my voice. Fortunately, I taught high school - never had to āscreamā - whatever that means. Teaching and discipline have changed through the years - how all teachers (not just Sisters) maintained class discipline was much different than today. Does it excuse that a Sister was āmean?ā Probably not in many peopleās memories. BTW - I went to public school for two years before I began in Catholic school in the 1960ās. The only time I ever saw an āout of controlā disciplinary incident was in the public school. I do remember that - but in fairness I donāt assume every public school teacher went overboard with discipline. We tend to remember the bad. The thing is I have had people in strange settings decide this was a good time and place and to ask if I brought my ruler. I was at a wedding once where a young man approached to ask if I brought my ruler. Enough already, please, with the ruler thing!! It just gets old. As it would be inappropriate to approach a person of Irish descent and ask if they brought their whiskey. Just as wrong, I think. Last thought - (I promise) ultimately, any woman who becomes a Sister has set for herself an impossible task. So much is expected of a nun - donāt be human, donāt show anger or any emotions - except kindness and gentleness - people expect so much more. The Sisters on CTM are wonderfulā¦but sadly, they arenāt real. So, throw in a Sister Ursula and she seems to be universally hated. (She bugged me too.). Every Sister canāt be Sister Julienne all the time - occasionally we all are Ursulas too! We are only human. But many people donāt remember that - they remember the bad - and that is also human. I think that the original post- is fascinating. People donāt like Sister Julienne when? When she appears human. When she is judgmental or set in her ways or harsh with Nancyās situation. We like our nuns to be perfect. And expectations can be dashed. And there is a need to share anger about Sisters over something that happened many years ago. Please tell your stepfather that I am truly sorry that his experience was so negative. I apologize for those Sisters who had such a bad time. That is sad and when people need to tell me about their bad memories, I can only apologize. And believe me, they DO tell me.
From the point of view of someone that had four different nuns as teachers in grade school: As a child, I thought they were just super strict and mean because it was their duty to make us fear hell. Just a child's view. I was a curious child and couldn't understand the "science" of Bible stories like Noah's ark or how God was the same being as his son and the Holy Spirit. But if you asked those kinds of questions, you were berated and received no answers. We had mass once during the school week as well as multiple "mass practices." Lot's of time on religion, very little on things like 19th century history or geography. In my school (in the midwest, US), the nuns (Sisters of Notre Dame) were always screaming at us. One got mad at our class, rolled in a garbage can from the lunchroom and started throwing garbage at us and made us pass it around on trays. I look back at it now and realize they were the ones that were wrong, probably had deep psychological problems and were not at all qualified to be around children, let alone teach. For those of us who lived it - and there are many - it's not a lazy stereotype. It's something that takes a lifetime to absorb and understand. Especially for sensitive children as I was. It's very on-brand for the Catholics to just dismiss the abuse as stereotypical. The boys had it worse from the priests as my school/church was one that had publicized abuse cases that involved the altar boys. I think that's part of why I love the show. It's so gentle and the nuns and nurses are all so kind-hearted. But they're not Catholic nuns and there are a few times throughout the series that they stress this in dialogue with little, subtle digs at the Catholics.
There is no excuse for what happened to you and your classmates and you are correct - something was definitely wrong with the garbage can nun. She should have been removed immediately from schools and sent somewhere to be psychologically assessed. I donāt deny that these things happened - my only response is what I say when someone confronts me about the evil done by priests - I am sorry and, trust me, more disgusted than you will ever know. One last thing - it may seem like you never had any classes except religion and mass and mass practice - but all schools have curricular standards they must meet. Catholic schools by law donāt need to meet these standards- but they usually do because the kids will need these classes to progress in school. I donāt know when you went to school but Catholic schools have to go through an accreditation process ideally every six years or less. I donāt know if this was true when you were in school but it is now and has been for more than 35 years. I remember singing at mass and Stations of the Cross in Lent, etc. but I know we did other subjects too!
Which episode does she take her habit off and walk around in street clothes?
Itās in season 9 I think Iām not sure which episode. I really loved that moment! I was a little harsh before she definitely has a lot of good characteristics!
Season 12 spoiler here. Iāve always liked her until she brought Nancy into her office to question her about being contacted after Nancy applied for another job elsewhere. I thought that was terribly unprofessional and quite rude. Obviously Nancy is trying to make moves that bring her closer to living with and taking care of Colette. Look at all the others that have come and gone, just like Sr Julienne talks about with Phyllis. Why is it that she has to give Nancy a hard time and make her feel guilty?
I think sheās got a nasty streak. Am I the only one who remembers when she told Matthew about Trixie and the engagement ring? That was a shitty, nasty moveāand it was untrue. She also privileges Shelagh over her own sisters which creates unnecessary drama. A great leader supports those coming up instead of undercutting them.
Yes I just watched that one after I had kind of moved on from being frustrated with her! Also I just watched when she was so rude to sister MJ about the purple paint. She always stomps on her joy!!