Austrian nuns who fled care home visit Rome and Vatican : NPR
NPR • • general
Key Points:
- Three Austrian nuns in their 80s, who previously escaped their care home to return to their convent, visited Rome for the first time and attended a general audience with Pope Leo XIV.
- The nuns secretly flew to Rome amid an ongoing dispute with their local provost, Markus Grasl, who opposes their return to the convent, citing unsuitable conditions and accusing them of breaking their vow of obedience.
- Both the sisters and the provost appealed to the Vatican, which ruled in favor of the nuns, allowing them to remain at the convent and appointing Abbot Jakob Auer to assist with their care.
- The sisters gained unexpected social media fame with an Instagram account showcasing their activities, which played a role in preventing their removal from the convent, though recent disputes led to court orders restricting the original account.
- Concerns remain about the sisters' welfare after they became unreachable by their appointed assistant, and a new Instagram account has been launched by their aide to continue sharing their story.
