Mother’s Day celebrations: The story of 4 nuns

In many societies, there is an existing expectation for women to have children, but this is not always the reality.

For some women, their commitment to religious faith and beliefs, particularly within the Catholic and Anglican faith, may serve as a significant obstacle to childbearing.

Globally, nuns or ‘sisters’ play critical roles like leading institutions, soup kitchens, environmental advocacy efforts and other philanthropic works in the society as well as countless ministries in parishes and communities.

Sister Sophia Amponsah, like many other sisters in the Catholic church, obtains the fulfillment of expressing motherhood in a special way.

She is a student of the sisters of Handmaids of the Divine Redeemer (HDR) of Accra. Here is where Sr. Sophia and many other sisters live their lives of celibacy in service to God. She said it was a childhood desire to be a sister when she grows, and her family did not deny her the opportunity.

“I was a little girl when I had the desire to be a sister. After junior high, I went to visit my sister, so I expressed the desire to her and she was like, no I will not allow you to be a sister and I told her that dad and mum have agreed,” she explained.

She has gone through the necessary process and is in her final stage of becoming a fully-fledged Roman Sister.

Sr. Regina Ignatia Aflah, on the other hand is the Assistant Superior General at the HDR and she said people normally wonder why they opted for such lives.

“They ask us whether we have blood, whether we have feelings, and we tell them that every human has feelings and if you don’t have that feeling, then what are you sacrificing.”

To them, they strongly believe remaining celibate till death is a great sacrifice that is rewarding. Consequently, they participate in various activities such as gardening, jogging, or exercising and praying to divert their attention from such feelings.

The sisters of Handmaids of the Divine Redeemer of Accra shattered the stereotype of loneliness on Mother’s Day, revealing their profound joy in uplifting one another and receiving tokens of love from children and loved ones.

“We are not attached to one particular person and the sisters help a lot with children so on Mother’s Day we get text messages from the people we have helped; people come and give us gifts. The feeling is great,” Sister Regina narrated.

She added that she personally receives calls from well-wishers right from 5:00am in the morning of the day of celebration as well as people hugging and wishing them right from their morning service, Mass.

Sr. Hellena Providencia Mireku, HDR Teacher also stated that the kids around sometimes come in with lots of drawings, picking out flowers to come and wish them and it is just lovely.

In telling us about the unflinching support their families give to them to remain celibate forever, Sister Hellena said, “My parents did not have any objection. I remember my father visited me almost every week so at a point they had to stop him from coming. He was so excited wishing that immediately I entered the convent, they should give me the dress so that everybody will know that his daughter is a ‘sister’”

Their dedication to guiding and nurturing young souls resonated deeply as they emphasized the importance of mothers spending more time to foster meaningful connections with their children.

Sr. Elizabeth Paula Nkansah Otchere is the Superior General of the Institute of HDR, and she stated that the sisters are everyday mothers, they don’t stop mothering each other and they enjoy doing so.

She admonished all mothers to have enough time for their children. They added that the children have a lot to share and are unable to interact with their parents because they leave the house early and come back late. This results in the children opening up to their peers who sometimes give them counter advice.

These women may never have children of their own, but their commitment to family values and community, indicate that motherhood goes beyond only having children.

Sarfoa Boahene & Kusi Kwartemaa