Catholics ousting nuns...
The Sisters of Bethany convent in Santa Barbara, California, is home to three elderly nuns who have lived there for decades. The oldest, Sister Angela Escalera, has lived in the home for 43 years.
But they are now being evicted by their landlord -- the Los Angeles Archdiocese. The Archdiocese told us they want to sell the convent in order to raise money to pay the hundreds of millions of dollars they owe to victims of sexual abuse by Catholic clergy. It is not yet clear where the nuns will go.
This was an incredibly frustrating story to report for several reasons.
First, we were not able to speak to the nuns and we couldn't even photograph them because their Mother General, their boss so to speak, ordered them not to interact with anyone from the press. This order came after one of the nuns, Sister Angela, criticized the Los Angeles Archdiocese for its decision to evict the nuns, saying it was unfair that she had her fellow sisters had to suffer for crimes committed by priests.
A representative from the archdiocese told us everyone in the church had to pay a price for the indiscretions of these priests, even though it may not always seem fair. What was frustrating was not just seeing these elderly nuns now thinking about moving from a place they called home since the late 1950's, but also the hurt to the largely latino community which came to rely on them.
A group of women told us how the nuns took them to the hospital when they didn't have cars and brought food to their families when they were hungry. They now have the same question I have: Who will be there to do that now for the people who need it?
The church has to meet its financial obligations, but it's not just the nuns that lose, it's the community they dedicated themselves to serving.
-- By Jason Carroll, CNN Correspondent
