Identity Construction of Roman Catholic Religious Sisters in the ...

This participant report vividly portrays that some priests position sisters as domestic workers
simply on the basis of gender. In some sense it mirrors how the women‘s body has been used
to define the kind of job they should do; they are constructed as designated to doing
household chores.
6.5.2 Position of Exclusion
The participants reported that their experience of exclusion from the Church‘s activity is
multiple. Some participants reported being excluded from the Church‘s leadership and
decision-making on the grounds of gender. Accordingly, they claim that they have been
relegated to the background when it comes to decision-making. As a result they feel cut-off
or positioned as unimportant members in the Church, who only have a hidden presence in the
Church. For instance, this participant from the international congregation says:
I think if you look at the Church and religious women, I think they put us
aside a bit … they really don‟t carry us along with the priest. I think they
see us as a second class … the priest first and after the sisters can be
considered … they don‟t involve the sisters at all like the diocese where I‟m
working presently. They (priests and the parishioners) don‟t know if the
sisters exist, if there is meeting, you will not hear-if the meeting is
tomorrow they just call us today to say there is meeting tomorrow.
In this extract the participant details briefly how sisters are excluded from full participation in
the Church on the basis of gender, which makes them feel sidelined. Some participants also
report that they have experienced exclusion in times of celebration when refreshments are
made available for only the priests (field notes). In this way the participants feel excluded.
These participants experience this exclusion on the basis that the Church ignores them as
women but gives privileges and gifts to the priests expecting them in turn to share with the
sisters what they receive. For example, this participant from an international congregation
emphasises on how sisters are excluded when gifts are given:
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