HERE is a challenge (a nice one!). Listen to these versions of this song.
Can you imagine a time in America when an outright religious sentiment could be expressed in music unapologetically and be loved by most everyone? I was there (at age 12, but there).
THIS song (believe it or not) reached number 1 on some charts in the US in 1963!
It is probably monaural (not stereo) as it played on AM Radio back then and the technology was not so well developed then.
The song? Dominique - by “The Singing Nun” (Soeur Sourire - “Sister Smile” in her native Belgian language.
The European version in the original language (French? Flemish?).
youtube.com/watch?v=rTMe3GdZCW0
And the Mary Ford version with the words in English.
youtube.com/watch?v=FuNc6YHOt5o
The English words are not exactly a perfect translation (I know enough French or Latin to recognize that the Albigenses were mentioned in the song specifically). But this song makes me cry a little bit.
It led to a film telling the story of the Nun and the song (and “The Sining Nun” album’s fame) leading to Ed Sullivan televising the sisters nationwide in America - at about the same time as the Beatles were being discovered.
Debbie Reynolds starred in the film (as a similar “Sister Ann”) which was highly idealistic, ending as it did with the nun eschewing worldly fame … and only agreeing to sing to help her orders’ missions in Africa. The Sullivan appearance led to his donation of a Jeep and some money to the order as initially the Sister would not take pay and for a time would not perform on the world stage.
In real life the story went on - to a less ideal storybook conclusion.
The songwriter, singer, Jeanine Deckers, rejected the movie “as fiction” (and the movie producers admittedly added some scenes were added to “her” story to flesh out the story).
And though she continued to produce music, complained that her sister superior tended to
censor any sad songs she wrote (since she was Sister Smile after all).
Jeanine left the convent in 1966, but remained a “lay Dominican of the order” and still considered herself a nun.
Phillips, her recording company would not let her use the Singing Nun name as it had rights to it … and her career faded. “Nobody knew who I was,” she said.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Singing_Nun
According to the above account of her biography, Jeanine began to diverge from Catholic teaching and became an advocate (around 1966 for artificial contraception).
She visited the US and joined the burgeoning Catholic Charismatic movement in 1979 and produced another album “Sister Smile” which contained religious songs done her own way.
The Belgian government began hounding her for back taxes that she couldn’t pay. As the royalties from her most profitable work were (she claimed) paid to the convent she belonged to at the time.
On March 29, 1985, Jeanine and her singing partner of 10 years Annie Pecher left a note citing the tax debt, took an overdose of barbituates and committed suicide.
But her beautiful tribute to the simplicity and faith of St. Dominic lives on.
May her mistake be pardoned and her song be her shield against judgement.
Thank you Sister. May you rest in peace. :crying:
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I learned a lot of new factoids, thanks everyone 
