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?

🧿🪬

@Claradiplomatique There were definitely bugged tennis rackets. But the trouble is, I look back now and think about things I saw and heard and think that they simply could not have happened as I remember them. I think lots got mixed up in my childhood imagination, in a very strange place and time to be a child (although I felt slightly vindicated when I visited the spy museum in Berlin)

Think yourself lucky that your domestic staff are just doing Jesus talk. Our nanny, driver and housekeeper reported to the state on our family conversations.

🥱

I knew the religion before even opening the thread.

This, the downside of having staff in your home really. Just maybe Google assertiveness see if any online tips on how to manage these people if you're new to it.

I knew the religion before even opening the thread.

Okay…I feel someone is projecting. I have not confirmed my nationality and diplomatic immunity doesn’t mean you can “kill civilians with impunity.”

I will continue to use my diplomatic passport to queue jump though at passport control. I’ll make sure I give you a little wave.

Where on earth do you live?? Ancient Egypt?

Good grief, training? Don't you know we are British and our public school education taught us to deal with all circumstances???

Anyway on a serious note OP, I have also lived somewhere with a housekeeper (but no nanny as I didn't have children, well apart from the orphan who turned up one day and didn't leave).

Just say "that's nice" and ignore. Nanny is in charge of children's things.

They sound like a nightmare.

I'd let them both go.

I wouldn't want that lunacy around my kids.

Why am I being attacked? I made a statement referring to the professionalism of nannies vs nurseries, in response to a pp who had mentioned nurseries.

I couldn’t have someone looking after my children who I didn’t like and trust, whatever the requirements of my / my husbands job were. If OP isn’t happy with the nanny she needs to make alternative arrangements one way or the other doesn’t she?

Did you struggle to read the entire thread? A couple of people were questioning OP for exposing her children to different "batshit" views and not being available 24/7 to her children and daring to have a career. OP herself has said this is essentially a lighthearted thread and that being the case, yes I do think there is scope for some tolerance and alternative viewpoints are typically welcome - even if there is a need to then discuss and counterbalance.

PS thank you for the cat tax. I had a random cat and an inherited dog until I suddenly had... 7 dogs.
Ignore those who don't want their children tainted with random proclamations of salvation. The children will cope if the housekeeper and nanny are kind. I had missionary friends who only hired evangelicals as staff. That was entertaining!
And yes, I was public sector (not diplomatic corps, I wish!) and yes I was expected to hire home help.

Best response

Don't be silly. These comments are boring. Didn't you read the bit about the OP being overseas!? So many people on Mumsnet don't seem to realise that there is a life beyond the UK.

Beat me to it 🤓

See my post above.

Your house, Your rules.
Tell the housekeeper and Co to leave their religious beliefs at the front door. Sounds like they've already got a free pass to spout their bile ( I'm not religious) If they don't like it they can go elsewhere. Hate folk ramming their beliefs down other's throats.

Well I think if only for due diligence you must record all batshit interaction here for the foreseeable future 😂

OP my husbands housekeeper cast a spell on me when we met. I can only assume it was to make me leave but it ended up making him sick. The new housekeeper found all sorts of witchcraft in our bed, birds nests buried outside our front door and other strange items in her vacated room.

I got stories!

I think we need stories!

No I didn’t struggle to read the entire thread, I just struggled to read a point in your random monologue. If you are responding to specific posts rather than contributing to the OP’s particular problem, it would make more sense to quote one of them.

I’ll have to try remember them all…

Most recent is the guy who couldn’t arrive to work on time because he was too afraid to walk past the recently filled lake (we have been in drought and have had heavy rains) because of the 7 headed snake that lives there.

If they're committed to their religions - especially the Catholic housekeeper, as her faith has a long list of specific regulations - they'll be unable to see this as anything they can leave at the door. It will permeate their entire lives and they'll feel morally obliged to 'protect' OP's family from the errors of their ways.

Since the two rub along okay, I'm assuming the nanny's more flexible in her outlook and well-versed in what to say and what to ignore. I'd be concerned about what the DC are absorbing - the 'fear of god' can be very literal to a child. The best defence might be, as modelled by PPs upthread, to introduce them to a wide range of belief systems, showing that no single one can be 'right' but it's all rather interesting.

Wow 😊 can I ask where you got it from please?

Someone left a curse (chicken entrails, etc) on my doorstep in Brazil. I caused consternation by sweeping it up, binning it and washing the step without dying.

I ditched the bloke anyway, as I didn't need to be dealing with that shit. So perhaps it did work, in a way!