In the Name of the Lord

A bestseller in Malayalam when it was first published in 2019 as Karthavinte Namathil, In the Name of the Lord is a harrowing account of Sister Lucy Kalapura’s life as a nun and her spirited fight for justice.

Cast out for writing a poem, for owning a car, for talking about the sexual harassment that nuns face in the Church, Sr Lucy reveals what it was like for her to join a nunnery hoping to lead a life of faith and service but to instead be confronted with unexpected and bone-chilling realities. She presents an unsettling narrative about nuns who have no choice but to surrender to the lechery of their male counterparts, as well as about issues such as corruption within the Church, the distorted faces of authority, the partisanship of the state, and the much-talked-about recent sexual assault case involving the Bishop of Jalandhar.

At a time when women continue to hesitate to report the sexual misconduct they face at home, at their workplaces and in society, this no-holds-barred memoir of a nun who has taken on the all-powerful Catholic Church by herself will inspire many to speak up for themselves as well as to think about how India treats its women.