Arson Attack on the Immaculate Conception Church in Saint-Omer
On the night of 1 September, a 39-year-old man set fire to the sacristy of the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Saint-Omer. The flames then spread to the naves and then to the whole church. The bell tower and the roof were completely destroyed.
With the help of 120 firefighters, the fire was brought under control after several hours. 34 people were evacuated from the area. The parish priest entered the burning church to evacuate the consecrated hosts. "I wanted to evacuate the Blessed Sacrament," he reported after successfully doing so and coming out unharmed.
The police arrested the culprit. He has been charged with ‘destruction of property by a means dangerous to persons, committed on the grounds of race, ethnicity, nation or religion in a repeat offence and attempted burglary in a repeat offence’. According to the authorities, he was known for similar activities. He has attempted to set fire to 15 churches and has been convicted 26 times.
During his trial for the arson of the four churches in Pas-de-Calais in January 2022, the man explained that he had acted ‘because of [his] past’: abandoned by his parents and placed in the care of a foster family, he recounted having been sexually abused by his adoptive father. "Every time I watch TV and all that, the priests are paedophiles. That's why I attack churches", he confessed.
The French Ministry of the Interior recorded almost 1,000 anti-Christian hate crimes in 2023. 90% of these incidents were directed against churches and cemeteries, but the Ministry’s statistical services also documented 84 personal attacks with an anti-religious motive against Christians.
Source: Day FR Euro; Kath.net; FDESOUCHE; Le Monde; LDC News Agency; rcf.fr
Image: Social Media (1); Social Media (2)