It’s one thing to take on a millionaire entertainer who mocks the faith of her youth. It’s another to take that entertainer on when you’re two nuns nearing 90 years of age.
That battle ended Friday for one of the nuns who collapsed and died in court trying to save her convent from Katy Perry.
Sister Catherine Rose, 89, was fighting Perry over the singer’s claims to the Los Feliz property on which a former convent of the Los Angeles Archdiocese once stood and where the nuns had lived for almost 40 years.
She collapsed during a court hearing in Los Angeles Friday, in what has been a protracted effort by the nuns to keep Perry from taking ownership of the property. The nun’s health had deteriorated rapidly, say associates, during the lengthy court battle and long days, plus grilling by Perry’s attorneys better suited for a murder trial.
Sister Catherine Rose pleaded with Perry saying, “… Katy Perry, please stop. It’s not doing anyone any good except hurting a lot of people.”
Soon after, the nun collapsed and died in a packed court.
By Dwight Widaman, Editor
On the nuns’ website Stand With The Sisters, the message “Rest with the angels our most precious treasure” is seen above a photo of Sister Catherine Rose.
Late Friday, Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez issued a statement that read in part, “Sister Catherine Rose served the Church with dedication and love for many years and today we remember her life with gratitude.[…]”
Holman was one of two nuns that wanted to sell an 8-acre convent in Los Feliz, their home as Sisters of the Most Holy and Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary for four decades, to restaurant owner Dana Hollister, who planned to turn the convent into a boutique hotel, while honoring the faith that made it possible. But in December, a jury ordered that Hollister pay almost $10 million in compensatory damages to the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and Perry for interfering in the Archdiocese’s sale of the property to the “Swish Swish” singer.
Perry, who’s real name is Katheryn Hudson, continues to mock her Christian upbringing, as she has done at virtually every public appearance and interview. Last year she received yet another award from a prominent homosexual advocacy organization.
“My first words were Mama and Dada, God and Satan,” she said at the award ceremony. “Right and wrong were taught to me on felt boards,” She said to whoops and hollers.
It’s a common theme for Perry.
“I don’t believe in a Heaven or a Hell, or an old man sitting on a throne,” Hudson told Marie Claire Magazine in 2013. “I’m not Buddhist, I’m not Hindu, I’m not Christian, but I still feel like I have a deep connection with God.”
On the other hand, the nuns had intended to donate the money to work for the poor. But the Archdiocese and Perry, working together in a strange alliance against the nuns, had different plans.
A judge ruled in 2016 that the nuns’ sale to Hollister was invalid on technical grounds, paving the way to a purchase by Perry from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.
Hollister was ordered to pay Perry $5 million in punitive damages for interfering with the sale.
If Ms. Perry gets her way, she’ll eventually move into the eight-acre property which consists of multiple buildings, including a church. Images of the property show an amenity- and architecturally rich estate. The salmon-colored Spanish-style compound surrounds a central courtyard with a pool. There’s also an attractive garden terrace and fountains.
Property records indicate the main living quarters were built in 1930 and expanded in 1985. The 20,000-square-foot structure has 25 bedrooms and 29 bathrooms, according to records on PropertyShark—plenty of room for Ms. Perry to “Roar” or live her “Teenage Dream.”