#BreakingNews Kidnapped Catholic Nun is Free - American Sister Suellen Released Alive from Captivity in Burkina Faso - Prayers Answered!

A Catholic American nun belonging to the Marianite Sisters, Sr. Suellen Tennyson, age 83 (pictured far left), was kidnapped from the convent of mission in Yalgo, Burkina Faso, Africa. She was abducted nearly 5 months ago, on April 5th, and was found alive on Monday, August 29th, 2022. Marianite Sister Ann Lacour, congregational leader of the Marianites,  confirmed the release, on Aug. 30.

“She is safe,” Sister Ann told the Clarion Herald. “She is on American soil, but not in America. She is safe. She was recovered (Monday) morning. We have spoken to her. She eventually will get back to the United States.”

According to the Clarion Herald, at least 10 armed men were involved in the attack in which Sister Suellen, 83, was abducted, the Marianites of Holy Cross said in an electronic newsletter at the time of the abduction.

Sister Ann said when she spoke with Sister Suellen, the missionary did not actually “know where she was.”

“She’s totally worn out,” Sister Ann said. “I told her how much people love her, and she doesn’t have anything to worry about. I told her, ‘You are alive and safe. That’s all that matters.’”

The Sisters confirmed her release on their FB page:

New Orleans Archbishop Gregory Aymond said he received a text from Sister Ann earlier in the day and was overjoyed that she had been freed. When Sister Suellen was abducted – barefoot and in the middle of the night – she had left behind her blood pressure medication and her glasses.

The congregation said Sister Suellen, the former international congregational leader for the Marianites of Holy Cross and native of the Archdiocese of New Orleans, was sleeping when the men burst into the convent, ransacked the living quarters and kidnapped her, leaving behind two other Marianite sisters and two young women who also lived in the convent.

“There were about 10 men who came during the night while the sisters were sleeping,” Sister Ann said in an e-bulletin April 6. “They destroyed almost everything in the house, shot holes in the new truck and tried to burn it. The house itself is OK, but its contents are ruined.”

Sister Ann said the Marianites contacted both the U.S. Embassy in Burkina Faso and the U.S. State Department and received assurance that this was “a high priority case for them.” The congregation also contacted the apostolic nuncios to the U.S., Burkina Faso and France as well as the Vatican’s secretary of state and the Leadership Conference of Women Religious in the U.S.

Bishop Theophile Nare of the Kaya Diocese, said Sister Suellen was abducted overnight between April 4 and 5 and taken to an unknown destination by Unidentified Armed Men (UAM). 

Source: Clarion Herald and Facebook Page of the Marianites Sisters