Nun of 24 Years leaves It All Behind To Marry A Monk She Met Once
Obviously no one is born a nun, though Sister Mary Elizabeth might as well have been. She showed her dedication at an early age, and committed herself entirely to a life of seclusion and solitude as early as she was able. She barely saw or spoke to anyone for over two decades. Then a chance meeting with a monk hit her like a bolt from the blue.
Lisa Tinkler
But we know what you’re thinking: with a name like Mary Elizabeth, she was destined to become a nun, right? Well, if that had been true you’d probably have been right, but that wasn’t her given name.
You see, she had actually been born Lisa Tinkler, but in many religious orders taking a new name represents a baptism of sorts. Such was the case with Lisa, though we’re getting ahead of ourselves.
Parents weren’t religious
It’s not that Lisa had been especially surrounded by religion growing up, either. Her parents weren’t religious, although she did have an aunt dedicated to her faith. This relative’s pilgrimage to Lourdes represented Lisa’s spiritual awakening.
Although she had been just six years old at the time, the concept of a holy life fascinated Lisa, and she wasted no time pursuing it. Her father had even built a bedroom altar at his daughter’s behest.
Lourdes water bottle
The altar acted as the focal point for little Lisa’s devotion to the Roman Catholic faith. “I had a little statue of Our Lady on it and a little Lourdes water bottle,” she told BBC News in 2023.
Lisa continued, “Actually, I thought it was the bottle that was holy and not the water — so I was just filling it from the tap and drinking the water.” But that was just the beginning.
Connected to God
Lisa’s commitment to Roman Catholicism only grew, and there was plenty of time for it to blossom as she spent time in her local Middlesbrough town church all by herself.
Sitting there in the second pew secured Lisa’s connection not only with God, but also with the Virgin Mary, for whom she felt an all-encompassing love. By her teenage years, Lisa felt she needed to make a commitment.