Surveillance video caught the moment when a man entered the Adoration Chapel of the Church of the Divine Child in Dearborn, Michigan, took a bible from a shelf next to the door and set off on it what has been described as a "commercial-grade" firecracker, causing an explosion which must have seemed like bomb; two female parishioners run out in fear.
An as yet identified suspect in the incident has been arrested on other charges and is currently being interviewed by police.
The man in the video has been described as "white," which seems true, as far as it goes - he doesn't appear to be black.
But (to me, at least), he does look Arab-American.
Or maybe he's simply a balding atheist who likes wearing dark glasses and sandals.
Dearborn has a Muslim and/or Arab population of close to 50%. The police chief, Ronald Haddad, is a Christian Arab-American.
Here are two videos. The first is from surveillance cameras. The second is a report including a short interview with Church of the Divine Child Pastor James Bilot.
What about the Blessed Sacrament? Was that unharmed?
ReplyDeleteYes, the Blessed Sacrament was unharmed. A bible was destroyed (he used it to light the firecracker) but that is all. I used the somewhat dramatic surveillance camera photograph above to highlight the fear that the two women praying must have felt (I'm sure they thought it was a terrorist bomb), but what you're seeing is a bit of temporary smoke from the firecracker, not actual smoke or fire damage to the church.
DeleteOdds are..... Anyway, the Church is under attack from all sides. From the pope to the physical churches to the people who are trying to be good Catholics, the attacks are now relentless and growing stronger. Pray, pray, pray.
ReplyDeleteThis is the church I attended as a boy with my grandparents and parents; this was my family's church. I am aghast.
ReplyDeleteThe pastor told the congregation this weekend that the man suffers from PTSD and that we should pray for him.
ReplyDeleteI think his ptsd may get worse in prison.
ReplyDeleteExcuse the perp and ignore the victims, it's a liberal thing
ReplyDelete