On 8 October, unknown perpetrators forced open the tabernacle at Santa Sofia Church in Corsano, in Italy’s Lecce province, and stole consecrated hosts from the tabernacle inside the Church. The incident was described by the local diocese as a serious act of profanation. In response, the Bishop of Ugento-Santa Maria di Leuca called for a diocesan day of reparation involving fasting, prayer and Eucharistic adoration.
The theft was discovered by the parish priest, Father William Del Vecchio, who alerted the bishop, the diocesan vicar general, the mayor and law-enforcement authorities. According to local reporting, the tabernacle on the main altar had been forced open and around 20 consecrated hosts inside were missing.
The Carabinieri opened an investigation, and surveillance-camera footage from nearby streets was being examined in an effort to identify those responsible.
Bishop of the Diocese, Monsignor Vito Angiuli, described the incident as a grave profanation affecting the Eucharist, and an "an insult to the greatest mystery," which is central to Catholic belief. He called on priests and faithful across the diocese to pray for reparation, conversion and the repentance of those responsible.
Parishes were asked to include a special intention in Sunday Masses on 11 October and to organise a day of fasting, prayer and Eucharistic adoration.
Sources: ilgallo, lecceprima, quotidianodipuglia
Symbolic Image: Pixabay