My housekeeper is vey religious and it’s causing issues

[Claradiplomatique]

We live overseas btw for anyone wondering.

So I have a lovely housekeeper who is very…religious.

She tells me off when she sees the children’s toys with horns (dragons, dinosaurs, Yoga Goat) or if she sees any children’s books about magic or witches. My own tarot cards and crystals are tucked into a drawer.

There is somewhat of a language barrier as I think we are having a normal conversation and she says “Jesus is coming soon” out of the blue.

There is also an ongoing battle between the nanny (different religion) and the housekeeper as nanny believes in evil eye etc and has given charms to me and the housekeeper says they are “satan’s work.” Nanny took the children to a Halloween craft workshop and came back with witchy dolls and a pumpkin which housekeeper said we should burn.

They do however both agree that our rescue street cat is sent from God to protect us.

AIBU? Do I double down on the no religion talk or let her go?

🧿🪬

Genuine question here - surely Christianity (quite strongly) eschews witchiness, tarot and crystals etc.... how are you fitting that into sincere Christian beliefs 🤔

You don't sound like you do respect those who are if they're "spewing bile" 🤣

About three years ago I started on a project in IT with a colleague, who turned out to be very "born again" religious. Pleasant enough chap, but after a while, when every second sentence was "I am so happy to have Jesus in my life" it became somewhat irritating. After 3 months I resigned although there were other reasons, but this was also a factor!
In your position I would ask noth housekeeper and nanny to respect your views and tone down the relgious doctrine.

First world problems

Historically cats that appeared to you weren't gifts from god, quite the opposite actually. Best not share that with the nanny or the housekeeper though.

Yes — like most topics on this board. Still allowed to talk about them.

😂It's just the whole hypocracy of it all and the fact that maybe i just respect myself a little bit more than to think religion will give me a sense of fullfilment. I guess It's a minefield that i am too afraid to step on.

Where the OP is located and why is crucial to the whole thing. A purely British experience is irrelevant

The cat can't be trusted.

Fire her first...and hire a dog.

Why on earth have you jumped to the conclusion that my experience is purely British? Because I can tell you it is not.

Well you seem to be unable to understand the OP's situation.

It’s a MN thing. I have refrained from sharing the part of my life on MN which has me employing a full time cleaner and a gardener. Firstly posters assume Im British and have a go at me for obviously being well off enough to afford it and then when I explain I live in Africa I am a colonial oppressor. You cannot win on MN.

Bit of a result whoever sent them, if you had a grainstore needed to get you and the household through the next year, though.

The cat comes first - the cat wants them to stay.

I made a direct reply to another poster’s comment. I accept it was not exactly pertinent to the OP’s housekeeper issue, but that’s what happens sometimes on threads. Why are you inserting yourself into this?

Cant get the staff these days....

There's a sitcom in this. If you're a writer you'd be mad to let such solid gold material go to waste.

I don't think it's a language barrier thing with "Jesus is coming soon"; she just spends a lot of time thinking about how Jesus is coming soon.

It's your house; I don't think you have to let your staff critique your belongings (like the toys). It's ok to just say gently that you're not looking for input on what toys your kids have and you're drawing a line under that topic.

In this particular case it’s not a mumsnet thing. This poster seems to be imagining me to be thinking and saying things that I simply am not.

I’d join in with my own made up religious nonsense.

“Housekeeper I hope you weren’t planning on eating that kiwi? It was cursed by dolphins”.

”Nanny High Goddess Boobula tells me she’s please with you this week”.

Magic charms and witchcraft, I think. Neither a good idea. But then you have crystals and Tarot cards, so maybe not?
Actually, why are you asking us? Consult the cards. Celtic spread should do it, or maybe just 3 major arcana.

My cat sitter advised me that my cleaner should use bleach in the sink. I just nodded in a non-commital sort of way. Maybe try that …

She does have an angelic aura about her. Or maybe it's the sunlight hitting the camera lens 😂

There's a different approach to encouraging religiously incontinent people to button it - I stumbled on this quite by chance a few years ago. It needs a couple of hours and preferably a pot of tea. You sit them down, express curiosity about the nuances of their belief system and then grill them mercilessly until they are squirming to get away. So Jesus is coming - you mean he's NOT already with us?? What do you mean by 'in spirit'? What exactly is the trinity? What's your take on transubstantiation? And to most of their answers you say either 'what exactly does that mean?' or 'what makes you think that'? It works even better if you can puzzle over contradictory Bible verses, all done very politely though.

Get this right and you won't hear a peep from them about religion ever again. If you get it wrong though, you could be up for further rematches. At least you'd have plenty of writing material though.

replace the staff

Keep the cat

Was it light-hearted though?

The point to me seemed to be be about silencing your housekeeper's religious views (though the nanny's superstitions you seem to embrace).