No 'why' in Mississippi as 2 slain nuns mourned

This 2015 photo provided by the School Sisters of St. Francis shows Sister Margaret Held.
This 2015 photo provided by the School Sisters of St. Francis shows Sister Margaret Held.

DURANT, Miss. -- Friends and colleagues who knew two nuns killed in their Mississippi home gathered Sunday to remember them, as authorities continued to investigate the crime that shocked people in the small communities where the women committed their lives to helping the poor.

Rodney Earl Sanders, 46, of Kosciusko, Miss., has been arrested and charged in the deaths of Sister Margaret Held and Sister Paula Merrill. The county sheriff said Sanders gave a statement about the killings.

A wake was held Sunday at the St. Thomas Church in Lexington where the women led Bible study. That will be followed by a Mass today in Jackson.

In the hours before the service, a few members of their orders gathered at the house where they lived and died. Along with some members of Merrill's family, they prayed outside the house, then went inside.

Later, more than 300 people went to the small church to say farewell to the two.

About 145 people filled the church and others filled 160 chairs outside, where a monitor showed the Sunday night service. Still more people stood alongside the seats to watch.

Bishop Joseph Kopacz of the Jackson Diocese led the service, called a vigil, for the deceased.

The church's priest, the Rev. Gregory Plata, spoke about how far-reaching the nuns' work was, and how much they'll be missed.

The women's bodies were found in their Durant, Miss., home after they failed to show up for work Thursday at a health clinic in Lexington, about 10 miles away.

Willie March, the sheriff of Holmes County, where the killings occurred, said Saturday that police work and tips from the community led police to Sanders. Authorities have said Sanders was developed as a person of interest early in the investigation.

March said he had been briefed by Durant police and Mississippi Bureau of Investigation officials who took part in Sanders' interrogation and was told that Sanders said he killed the women and gave no reason for the crimes. The sheriff said the investigation is ongoing.

Authorities said Sanders was being held in an undisclosed detention center pending a court appearance. They have not given any details on why they think Sanders killed the women or whether he knew them but they do say they believe he acted alone.

The order Held belonged to -- School Sisters of St. Francis -- thanked law enforcement officers working on the case and thanked people who offered prayers and support in the wake of the nuns' deaths.

In the poverty-stricken Mississippi county where the two nuns were slain, many people were still mourning their loss.

Jonell Payton, a Durant alderman, lives across the street and a few doors down from Held and Merrill's house. She said the nuns were "the most precious two people" and were known for helping provide medicine for those who couldn't afford it.

Both women worked at the clinic, where they gave flu shots, dispensed insulin and provided other medical care for children and adults who couldn't afford it.

The clinic and the nuns' home in Durant are in Holmes County, population 18,000. With 44 percent of its residents living in poverty, Holmes is the seventh-poorest county in America, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Information for this article was contributed by Steve Karnowski of The Associated Press.

A Section on 08/29/2016

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