Three Austrian nuns — Sister Rita (82), Sister Regina (86) and Sister Bernadette (88) — have made a dramatic return to their former home at Kloster Goldenstein near Salzburg after being relocated to a retirement home more than a year prior.
According to the sisters, they were moved in December 2023 to a nursing facility by church authorities who said the convent no longer met the standards for independent living. The nuns claim the decision was made without their full consent, and they believed they had the right to stay in the convent for life.
With the help of former students and a locksmith, the trio quietly returned to Kloster Goldenstein on September 4 2025. At the time they re-entered, the building reportedly lacked electricity and running water, and the locks had been changed.
On social media — the sisters maintain a joint Instagram account with tens of thousands of followers — they have shared updates about their life back at the convent, describing their return as deeply joyful and spiritually right.
Church officials remain unsatisfied, pointing out the sisters’ advanced age and the risk of their living alone in a building the church deems unsuitable. They say negotiations took place and the move was necessary for the women’s welfare.
The story raises broader questions about autonomy, aging religious communities, and how much say long-serving members have when institutional decisions change their living arrangements.
