Meet Jillian Edwards Coburn

My entire life has been centered around the Catholic doctrine and the Catholic faith.

I was told to seek refuge and guidance from a priest when things were going wrong in my life. I was taught that salvation was available to anyone who had faith in God, his son, or those who have entered the life of faith and who spread the message of God: for example, a priest or a nun, etc. My grandfather’s brother, Roy D Edwards, was my great uncle and also the priest at St Peter’s Church in Carencro, Louisiana. My father’s brother, Daniel Edwards, was the priest at St Jules in Lafayette, Louisiana. As far back as I remember, I can recall that every time I was in trouble or when I sinned, I was told to seek guidance from a priest. If I made the wrong decision, I had to see a priest. All I have known my entire life is the Catholic tradition.

The first recollection I have of fearing for my salvation was when I became pregnant with my eldest child, Gabriella, when I was 17 years old. I sought out guidance from a priest and told him I was pregnant and that I wanted to have an abortion. He warned me not to get one because I would never get to heaven- I would go to hell instead. I didn’t get the abortion, nor did I put Gabriella up for adoption. At 18 years old, I was forced to get married in the church because in my household we were taught to be submissive to Catholic authority, teaching, and tradition. We were taught to never question the Catholic authority; to never create what would be seen as a scandal in the eyes of the church. I was pressured to get married when I was a young adult, to a man I did not love because it was the right thing to do in the eyes of the Catholic church. Father Robicheaux told me to do the right thing because he held this authority of showing members of the clergy how to achieve salvation. He told me that when my marriage was bad, I should persevere and even “engage in more sexual conduct with my husband”. I obeyed what he said and I did as he told me to do.