Double Crossed

This groundbreaking exposé of the mistreatment of nuns by the Catholic Church reveals a history of unfulfilled promises, misuse of clerical power, and a devastating failure to recognize the singular contributions of these religious women.
The Roman Catholic Church in America has lost nearly 100,000 religious sisters in the last forty years, a much greater loss than the priesthood. While the explanation is partly cultural--contemporary women have more choices in work and life--Kenneth Briggs contends that the rapid disappearance of convents can be traced directly to the Church's betrayal of the promises of reform made by the Second Vatican Council.
In Double Crossed, Briggs documents the pattern of marginalization and exploitation that has reduced nuns to second-, even third-class citizens within the Catholic Church. America's religious sisters were remarkable, adventurous women. They educated children, managed health care of the sick, and reached out to the...