Taking God To Court

An Ontario nun is suing her former sisters after an alleged campaign of harassment spanning fourteen years.

The alleged bullying, which led to Victoria Ivantchenko’s resignation from the convent in 2010, included identity theft, psychological abuse and animal abuse; Ivantchenko claims other nuns killed her two cats.

Ivantchenko is suing St. Kosmas Aitolos Greek Orthodox Monastery and the Greek Orthodox Metropolis for wrongful constructive dismissal. The monastery dispute the former nun’s claims, and her grounds for a lawsuit, claiming she was not an employee:

“She did not resign as there was no position to resign from. Her to choice to leave was her own decision.”

We’re all accustomed to high-profile law suits claiming years of bullying. These tend to involve large corporations, and are usually brought by people with high-profile positions.

Perhaps it’s down to the working culture in religious organizations; God makes the rules, and working from this perspective, people in positions of authority may wield more power than in a traditional workplace.

But is it right to claim that a nun is not an employee? She worked for an organization, religious or not. Many people see their professions as a calling, but most would not accept undignified treatment in the workplace.

Whether Ivantchenko’s claims are true or not will likely be decided in court, now that an Ontario Superior Court Justice has thrown out St. Kosmas Aitolos Greek Orthodox Monastery and the Greek Orthodox Metropolis’ motion for dismissal.

Whether Ivantchenko is regarded as an employee or not remains to be seen.

Contact the author here: miriam@morningquickie.com