Consecrated Hosts Stolen from Two Rural Churches
Two churches in Buchy and Rouvray‑Catillon were broken into during the night, with consecrated hosts taken in what the Archdiocese of Rouen denounced as a grave act of desecration.
Two churches in Seine‑Maritime—the Church of Saints‑Pierre‑et‑Paul in Buchy and Saint‑Martin in Rouvray‑Catillon—were broken into during the night of 19–20 February 2026. According to the Diocese of Rouen, unidentified individuals forced entry, stole liturgical objects and removed consecrated hosts. Archbishop Dominique Lebrun, together with Father Félix Noungou and Father Sébastien Savarin, confirmed the desecration, stating that the acts constituted “a serious attack on the sacred character of the place and the right of the faithful to the peaceful exercise of their religion”.
The diocesan statement added that the theft of the Eucharist “touched the heart of the Catholic faith,” and expressed “deep bitterness” on behalf of communities attached to their cultural and spiritual heritage. Gendarmes attended both sites and opened investigations. The parishes announced that a time of prayer and reparation would be organised in each church.
The incidents occurred one month after a similar profanation at Saint‑Sever Church in Rouen, where the consecrated hosts were stolen from the tabernacle, an act the diocese condemned as a "grave profanation". (OIDAC Reported)
Sources: Tribune Chrétienne, franceinfo
Photo: Diocese of Rouen