Photos: the tragic life story of the Singing Nun

Jeanine Deckers, known to the world as The Singing Nun, catapulted to fame in the 1960s with her enchanting melodies and powerful vocals. Her hit song Dominique captured hearts globally, epitomizing spirituality and devotion.

While her songs resonated with joy and faith, Decker's life gradually unfurled into a tale filled with struggles, leading to a heartbreaking demise that left the world in shock. This is her story.

Image: Soeur Sourire official trailer, Eyeworks Film / YouTube

Born in Belgium in 1933 to a pâtisserie owner, Decker's mom described her as a 'tomboy' and educated her in a Catholic school in Brussels. When she joined a local Catholic version of Girl Guides, she bought her first guitar. When she was 15, she had a vision that she would become a nun.

A multi-faceted artist, she studied to teach sculpture and that's just what she did during her early 20s. However, she realized teaching was not for her, and in 1959, in what some describe as a form of rebellion, she joined a convent in Waterloo where she took the religious name 'Sister Luc Gabriel.'

While living in the convent, she would write and sing songs. The other nuns and superiors allowed her to a record an album to raise money for its mission in the Congo. They thought they could sell it to visitors at the convent.

Deckers recorded the album in 1962. In 1963, the single 'Dominique,' which she wrote about Saint Dominic, became an unexpected international hit.

Image: Soeur Sourire official trailer, Eyeworks Film / YouTube

Her success truly was staggering. Taking on the stage name Sœur Sourire ('Sister Smile'), she even beat out Elvis to top the US and other international charts. ‘Dominique’ was the first (and only) song by a Belgian artist to reach such fame in America. She appeared on the 'Ed Sullivan Show.' The song won a Grammy in 1964.

Although her whole album delighted millions around the world, her singing career fizzled almost as quickly as it began. Despite her massive success, she didn’t get much of the money either, with the record label taking a large chunk and her congregation taking most of the rest.

But her fame remained relevant in the years to come. In 1966, Debbie Reynolds starred in a sweet musical based on her life. Sister Luc Gabriel reportedly rejected the film as "fiction."

Image: Debbie Reynolds in 'The Singing Nun,' 1966 / Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

In 1966, she also left the monastic life. She later said she was given the boot because her superiors said she was a "bad influence" and were controlling over her music, censoring lyrics that they considered "sad." When she left the convent, the record company said she couldn't continue singing under the names Sœur Sourire and The Singing Nun.

Image: Télé Midi 72 - 29/02/1972/ via Ina Chansons / YouTube

Angered by the Catholic Church and what she thought was its failure to implement the Second Vatican Council reforms, she released a song in 1967 called 'Glory be to God for the Golden Pill,' about the birth control pill. This led to a backlash, with the church canceling many of her planned concerts. Her second album also failed to prosper. She said it was because she couldn’t use her old name,

Image: Journal de Paris - 2 septembre 1971 / YouTube

Once out of the convent, Deckers moved in with her old friend Annie Pécher, with whom she would live until her death. At the time, she denied rumors that she was gay. However, her biographer Catherine Suavat asserts that the two eventually did develop a romantic relationship, but only after several years.

Image: Soeur Sourire official trailer, Eyeworks Film / YouTube

Once out of the convent, she and Annie opened a school for autistic people and she released another album. However, in the late 1970s, the Belgian government claimed she owed $63,000 in back taxes. She said all the royalties from her successful track were given to her convent. The convent settled with the State but the label, which earned 95% of the revenue, did nothing. Deckers ran into heavy financial problems.

Image: Soeur Sourire official trailer, Eyeworks Film / YouTube

In 1982, in a last-ditch attempt to resume her career and get out of financial woes, she tried to score a hit with a disco version of Dominque. It failed. In addition, her center for autistic children had to close its doors for financial reasons. From there, she tried to make a living by giving music and religion lessons.

Image: Dominque (1982 disco version) music video / YouTube

In 1985, Deckers and Pécher ended both their lives together by taking large amounts of barbiturates and alcohol. In their farewell note, they mentioned their financial struggles. Despite the way they died, the Catholic Church gave them their rites.

Their joint tombstone reads: "J'ai vu voler son âme/ A travers les nuages" (English: "I saw her soul fly through the clouds"), a line taken from the 1966 song Luc Dominique. Deckers was 51.

Image: Patrick.trimbur, Feb 18 2009 / Wikimedia

Her curious but tragic life means she'll never be forgotten. In the 1990s, an off-broadway musical was written about her life. And in 2009, a Franco-Belgian biopic starring Cécile de France was released. De France described her as a "punk before her time."

Image: Soeur Sourire official trailer, Eyeworks Film / YouTube

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