Priest stabbed - CathNews New Zealand

Priest chased, stabbed during televised Mass

Juliet Palmer — Mon, 25 Mar 2019 07:09:10 +0000

A Montreal priest was chased and stabbed while celebrating mass last Friday.

The attack on Father Claude Grou at Saint Joseph's Oratory was captured on a livestream and television broadcast of the mass.

Footage shows a man in jeans, a parka and a white baseball cap run up the sanctuary steps towards the priest.

Grou attempted to run away as the attacker knocked over a candle, but was quickly caught, pushed to the ground and stabbed.

The assailant slashed Grou in his stomach. The knife broke during the attack.

The 26-year old suspect - since identified by Montreal police as Vlad Christian Eremia - then dropped the knife and stood as members of the congregation ran towards him.

Three men restrained Eremia while other people went to help Grou.

When police arrived, Eremia was being detained by church security.

Grou, who was slightly injured on his upper body, was taken to hospital and released later that same day.

He thanked everyone who expressed concern for his health and said he plans to return to work after a short rest.

"There are so many people who helped me to pass through this moment and now my health is fine," he said.

"My health is good and I'm recovering from my emotions."

A member of the congregation who saw the attack said when Eremia started walking towards the sanctuary she thought he was going to kneel to say a prayer in front of a statue of Saint Joseph.

When she saw him going up the sanctuary steps and remove a knife from his clothing, the woman said she realised what his intentions were and ran out of the church screaming to alert the security.

Another witness said he saw police arrive and take the man away in handcuffs.

"I find this incident very unfortunate, in a place so peaceful that attracts millions of visitors," he said.

"With what happened in Christchurch, it seems that all places of worship are being targeted," he added.

Montreal Police say the attack was an isolated incident.

Eremia appeared briefly via video conference at the Montreal courthouse on Saturday afternoon.

He was expected back in court yesterday following a psycho-social evaluation.

Source

Priest chased, stabbed during televised Mass

Priest stabbed in neck during Mass

Juliet Palmer — Thu, 18 May 2017 08:06:34 +0000

A priest stabbed in the neck while he was saying Mass at Mexico City's cathedral is in a critical condition.

The attacker tried to slit Father Miguel Angel Machorro's throat, a witness said.

The suspect, who identified himself as John Rock Schild, told authorities that he is an American artist and invoked his right to remain silent," the District Attourney's office said.

Nobody knows what Schild's motive was.

Armando Martínez, a lawyer for the Mexican Archdiocese said they needed more information to draw any conclusions.

"We cannot talk about terrorism, we cannot talk about motives because we obviously have no significant facts," he said.

A report from Mexico's Catholic Multimedia Center says Mexico remained the most dangerous country in the world for priests in 2016 for the eighth year in a row.

The report goes on to say there has been an "alarming" increase in attacks on priests since President Enrique Peña Nieto entered office in 2012.

Violence against Catholics in Mexico has escalated.

At least 15 priests were murdered over the past few years in regions "blighted by violence and drug trafficking".

Source

Priest stabbed in neck during Mass

Priest stabbed "for being Indian"

Juliet Palmer — Mon, 20 Mar 2017 06:55:42 +0000

A priest was stabbed "for being Indian" just before celebrating Mass on Sunday. The stabbing happened at the 11am mass at St Matthew's church in the Melbourne suburb of Fawkner North. It is believed the 72-year old offender accused Fr Tomy Kalathoor Mathew of being Hindu or Muslim and stabbed him in the neck. The Read more

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