A man has been arrested by police in Mississippi after two women Religious were found stabbed to death in their home.

Sister Margaret Held, 68, a member of the School Sisters of St Francis in Milwaukee, and Sister Paula Merrill, 68, a member of the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth in Kentucky, had worked as nurses at the Lexington Medical Clinic.

Police officers discovered the women’s bodies after co-workers called asking to check on them after they failed to report for work at the clinic.

“These were just two wonderful, faith-filled women who just brought so much life to this poor little section of Mississippi. They and so many of the Sisters who have come down here throughout the years are the unsung heroes,” said Franciscan Fr Greg Plata of St Thomas the Apostle church in Lexington.