3 rebel nuns in their 80s reclaim Austrian convent

The prayers offered a rare moment of calm amid the media whirlwind engulfing them in the aftermath of their unorthodox flight -- and ongoing battles with the Church hierarchy over their right to remain in the nunnery.

Former student Eva-Maria Seeber, 76, told AFP that she had come to support the trio and take a stand.

"You can't just relocate elderly people without asking them. It's cruel," she said, adding that two nuns were taken "straight from the hospital" to the nearby care home.

Sister Bernadette, 88, speaks to over a dozen of supporters and former students, at the convent chapel of the Goldenstein castle, in the municipality of Elsbethen, south of Salzburg city, Austria. (Image credit: AFP)

- 'They've blossomed' -

Relations with Church officials, who insist the nuns had to be placed in a Catholic care home due to their ailing health, have nosedived in recent weeks.

The trio's superior, Provost Markus Grasl of Reichersberg Abbey, has even accused them of breaking their vows of obedience.

The sisters are "acting against the vows they voluntarily took", argued Grasl, whose abbey took charge of Goldenstein in 2022 together with the Archdiocese of Salzburg.

While it remains unclear what the Catholic Church was planning to do with the convent, the nuns tell a different story.

They say the Church claimed they were suffering from "severe dementia" to have them transferred to a retirement home -- without even consulting them.

But with the help of former students and other supporters -- a group which now numbers up to 150 people -- the nuns were able to reclaim their abandoned convent.

More than two weeks ago, "our prayers were heard and we were picked up and brought to Goldenstein", Sister Bernadette told AFP.

"The locksmith was there to open the door, and we were able to return to our cells," said the eldest nun, who first entered Goldenstein in 1948.

What the nuns found, however, left them "in great shock", as rooms had been cleared out, the stair lift dismantled and there was neither running water nor electricity.

Mercifully for them, some of those issues were easily fixed.

"We are finally back home in the convent -- it feels heavenly," said Sister Bernadette.

"They've blossomed from the very first day they were back," said Martina Krispler, who had brought lunch for the nuns and their helpers.

"The sisters were always warm, loving and caring during our school days," the 28-year-old former student said.

"We simply do not agree with the way the Church is treating them."

Supporters of three rebel nuns in their 80s who had graced international headlines after fleeing their care home to occupy their former convent in Austria's Salzburg province flocked to the nunnery Saturday in a show of solidarity. (Image credit: AFP)

- 'Until end of our lives' -

The nuns hope to reconcile with the Church and be allowed to stay in the convent "until the end of our lives" -- as they say the Church had said they could.

"They should keep their promises," said Bernadette, leaning on her walking frame.

"That's the only disappointment, that they broke their promise."

A fundraiser has meanwhile been launched on GoFundMe, with donations now topping 14,000 euros ($16,400).

Their supporters have also upped their game on social media, where clips of the nuns' daily lives attracted more than 51,500 followers on Instagram by Wednesday.

In one post soundtracked by the theme tune to Sylvester Stallone's boxing epic "Rocky", 81-year-old Sister Rita jogs in her habit, a big smile across her face.