Historic Bruyères-le-Châtel Church Vandalized; Consecrated Hosts Stolen

Country: France

Date of incident: January 31, 2016


Unknown perpetrators broke a window, overturned the tabernacle, stole the ciborium containing consecrated Hosts, and sacked the sacristy. The bishop of Evry called it a "rampage." According to a parishioner, this was not the first time the church had been a victim, as graffiti had been found last year. However, this attack was much more serious. "Consecrated Hosts were stolen. For someone who doesn't believe, this probably does not matter much. For [Catholics] it is the most serious. It is the body of Christ. It is Jesus who was attacked." For the bishop of Evry, "this is a real attack against the Catholic Church. It is the symbol of the sacred that has been affected. There is a will to do harm." (Translated from French).

Police are investigating. Source: Le Parisien