Finished! I finished reading Trapped in Paradise Catholic Nuns in the South Pacific 1940-1943. This is a true story written in journal form. Sister Hedda wrote a letter just about every to Mother Superior. These are the letters.
The first chapters are about the journey to the islands. Everyone was sea-sick one day or another. And the journey last four months!
Once I reached Chapter 6, the story became a page-turner. The sisters were running from hiding place to hiding place to escape Japanese capture. And there were a couple of times when the sisters met some Japanese face to face and managed to get out of the situations. Most of the times, however, the sisters were hiding in the jungle and jumping from island to island.
Upon reflection, I am amazed at the glimpses of Divine Providence that was evident. The times when the sisters were in Japanese control, they were treated with respect. I mean no one was raped. Oh sure, they were starved, but so weren’t the Japanese soldiers. In fact, prisoners weren’t fed; they had to scrounge around for food.
Even the priests weren’t abused. There was one death. Father Hennessey was a prisoner on a ship that was attacked and sunk. Some sisters and brothers died from sickness, or from the bombs being dropped, but no one was sexually abused.
Whereas the same couldn’t be said about the plantation owners. They were shot immediately upon capture.
Do I recommend the book? Definitely, I really got a feel for the war in the South Pacific during WWII. I also saw how missionaries begin a life among a pagan culture. Do you know that after the war, these sisters went right back to their missions? The people needed them and the sisters had a job to do. (Matt 25: 40)
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