People are obsessed with this gym influencer and her Catholic nun twin

What do you get when you cross a nun with a fitness guru?

…Social media stardom, apparently. At least, that’s what happened to one influencer after she shared a homage to her sister on TikTok.

Christie Anderson, from Nova Scotia, Canada, generally posts photos of herself in tight-fitting ensembles, showing off her almost impossibly toned physique.

But, last week, she uploaded a heartwrenching tribute to her identical twin, who chose a very different path in life.

She began the clip with an image of herself beaming next to her sis, who is decked out in a full white and grey habit.

The video goes on to show a montage of her sibling in different contexts including on stage at a church, ice skating and even lifting weights.

Overlaying the slideshow is the caption: “The first thing people think when they see my religious twin sister is… ‘Cult’. ‘Mean’. ‘Oppressed’.

“I see… Beauty. Peace. Kindness. Strength. Freedom.”

The prejudice-shattering tribute was greeted with warmth and admiration by viewers, racking up more than 37.9 million views and 5.3 million likes in just five days.

“Nuns out in the wild are my favourite moments in time,” one commentator wrote. “I like seeing them living their whole lives. You don’t always get to see that part.”

“I always thought nuns were so scary like in movies but when I watched this video, I realised they're human like us,” added another.

“WHY does this make me emotional?” asked a third.

It’s not the first time Christie has introduced followers to her twin, with two earlier videos racking up 11.4 million and 8.1 million views respectively on TikTok alone (she has also uploaded them to Instagram).

The first, posted in July, showed the two sisters at the gym, getting their heart rates up on the treadmills, doing some impressive pull-ups, then pumping some pretty serious iron.

In the second, they share a sushi meal together – with Christine and her husband left red-faced after failing to say grace.

The comments on all three videos are filled with questions about the reality of daily life as a nun.

One asked about the rules regarding accommodation: “Is it true that nuns live at the church or can they live like in a regular home?”

While others were more interested in the importance of the religious habit: “Are people not [allowed] to see your sister’s hair? [Or] does she always have to have the hat on sorry [I don’t know] what it’s called,” asked another.

Elsewhere, TikTokers shared their own experiences of Catholicism, or living under the direction of nuns.

One revealed: “My mother was a cloister nun for over 15 years. Went at 17 years old. She wasn’t allowed outside or even able to talk outside of prayer. It was the strictest order.

“She was told it was on a farm but when she got there the mother superior died and they got rid of all the animals.

“She had me at 43 years old! She left because she eventually developed deep depression. She’s led a very interesting life.”

And others questioned whether footage of a religious Muslim woman would be met with such affection.

“If it was a hijabi with a jilbab, everyone would have a problem with it,” one wrote.

Ultimately, we like that this triptych of videos challenges preconceptions, and shows that whatever route we take in life, really we are all just humans.

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