St. Patrick Catholic Church in Wichita, Kansas, was vandalized on March 16th. The church was the scene of a hate crime; after forcing their way inside, statues were destroyed, glass smashed and other extensive damage taken upon the sacred space. St. Patrick Church is a mainly Latino parish located in a working class neighborhood of North-Central Wichita. They have a parish school. Parishioners were unable to worship at Mass there Saturday night—and Masses were moved to the school gymnasium on Sunday. The FBI is investigating. A Satanic website was scrawled on a wall. A group will be holding a Satanic wordship ritual on the grounds of the Kansas State Capitol on March 28. (Source: Kansas Bishops Conference Facebook Page)
A Sunday 7:30 a.m. police update: Wichita police reported on Sunday morning that a man from Saline County was arrested in connection with the burglary and vandalism at St. Patrick Catholic Church. Wichita police said the suspect is a 23-year-old man. Field Community Response Teams found the man around 2:20 a.m. Sunday morning in the area. The suspect was booked into the Sedgwick County Jail on charges of burglary, criminal desecration and criminal damage to property. The case will be presented to the Sedgwick County District Attorney and federal prosecutors for formal charging considerations. (Source: 12 News)
Wichita police are investigating a burglary that involved vandalism and the burning of an American flag Saturday morning at a north Wichita catholic church.
The local Bishop Carl Kemme wrote: "Please keep the priests and parishioners of St Patrick Parish in Wichita in your prayers. Their church was extensively vandalized last evening. May God restore their confidence anmd bring the perpetrators to justice."
The parish Facebook Page wrote:
Dear Family of St Patrick,
It’s with a heavy heart that we wanted to inform you that our church was vandalized this morning. Our priests are safe. For this reason, there will be No 5:00 p.m. Mass tonight as the investigation continues.
We will keep you posted in regard to the scheduled events for this weekend and Mass
The parish Facebook Page wrote:
Dear Family of St Patrick,
It’s with a heavy heart that we wanted to inform you that our church was vandalized this morning. Our priests are safe. For this reason, there will be No 5:00 p.m. Mass tonight as the investigation continues.
We will keep you posted in regard to the scheduled events for this weekend and Mass
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