Women religious imprisoned under Eastern European communism collection

After the fall of Communism in Eastern Europe, Pope John Paul II invited the Church in other parts of the world to help the Church in Eastern Europe. Sr. Margaret Nacke and Sr. Mary Savoie, Sisters of St. Joseph from Concordia, Kansas responded to this invitation. What they discovered was that the experience of the women religious living under Communism was an important part of history that needed to be preserved. It was a story that needed to be documented, recorded, and treasured.

First, they decided the countries that needed the most help in recording their histories were: Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Ukraine. Second, they were able to locate and obtain the consent of the sisters and their communities who underwent the imprisonment experience. Third, they were also able to raise monies to purchase recording equipment and to pay interviewers and translators to conduct, record, and transcribe the testimonials of the sisters’ survivors. Fourth, they then consulted a number of Catholic research centers and universities throughout the United State for a location to hold, organize, and preserve these testimonials. Fifth, after consulting with Sr. Mary Charlotte Chandler, RSCJ, the Director for the Center for the Study of Religious Life, which is located on the campus of Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, a decision was reached. It was decided the place best suited as a depository for these testimonials is the Paul Bechtold Library and Archives at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. Finally, this project is given the title: Women Religious Under Eastern European Communism.

These documents are preserved on acid free paper. Presently, over two hundred testimonials have been received. They are being preserved as they have been received. This is to say that they are being “compiled” not edited. The reason for this is expediency. As it has been said, “The enemy of the good is perfection.” It is the decision of this compiler, that it is important to make these documents available as soon as possible. So there is an authenticity to the documents for this reason. There is also a simplicity and charm that is kept in these transcriptions. They are being collated by country and then arranged alphabetically within each volume by the name of the interviewees. These documents will also be digitized for scholarly and preservation purposes. The bound documents will be available for students and scholars to examine and research. Eventually with digitization they will be available to the wide world of scholarship.

These testimonials record the heroic contributions of these brave women. Not only did they manage to survive the atrocities of imprisonment, isolation and persecution, but in many cases they individually and corporately thrived. In fact, because of the exemplary witness they were to those around them, some of these communities attracted new members and managed to flourish in spite of the risk and oppression.

Kenneth O’Malley, C.P., Paul Bechtold Library Archivist, 2007