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The Catholic priest, named Father Raj "Arul" Carasala, age 57, was shot and killed in front of the rectory of Saints Peter and Paul Parish in Seneca, Kansas, U.S.A.
A special Mass was concelebrated by Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City, for the murdered priest, on April 3, 2025.
66-year-old Gary Hermesch from Tulsa, Oklahoma, is accused of killing Father Arul Carasala on April 3rd, 2025. Hermesch went before a judge on April 4th after being charged with first-degree murder by the Nemaha County District Attorney. Attorney Brad Lippert’s office, of Nemaha County, said in a press release that the murder was planned. Hermesch is being held on a $1 million bond in the county jail.
This man had written letters to the local Kansas newspaper, in one of the letters he said, "maybe if we just follow Donald Trump's example we’ll 'make the Church great again,' " ( Topeka, Kansas, television station)
KSNT television station stated that Hermesch had written letters-to-the-editor published in The Courier-Tribune, a newspaper of Nemaha County, Kansas. The letters contained opinions about Catholicism and the Vatican, however he did not mention Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church or Father Carasala in the letters.
In letters Hermesch wrote:
“What we’re seeing is just the fruits of the ‘new’ Novo Ordo Mass and the vision of ‘love’ Pope Paul IV claimed to be envisioning,”
“Let’s not sweat the small stuff, though, maybe if we just follow Donald Trump's example we’ll 'make the Church great again,'" an August 2021 letter signed by Gary Hermesch said. "So why are things headed south like a runaway freight train? Simple. The faith is not being taught. Now is that equality and tolerance of other religions, or what?"
The Courier-Tribune shared the letters with KSNT.
According to a report from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, officers responded to the church on April 3rd to reports of gunshots. Deputies with the Nemaha County Sheriff’s Office and officers with the Seneca Police Department found the priest injured outside the rectory with gunshot wounds, KSNT reported. Emergency responders took Father Carasala to a hospital where he died.
During the Mass for Fr. Carasala, Archbishop Joseph Naumann noted Father Carasala's dedication to the church and its congregation; "There really are no words for an occasion like this," he said, adding, "It takes a lot to be a priest today. It requires heroic love."
Fr. Carasala was ordained a priest in 1994 in the Diocese of Cuddapah, in southeast India. He had served in Kansas since 2004 following an invitation by then-Archbishop of Kansas City James P. Keleher. The priest became a U.S. citizen in 2011, but retained status as an overseas citizen of India.The Courier-Tribune shared the letters with KSNT.
According to a report from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, officers responded to the church on April 3rd to reports of gunshots. Deputies with the Nemaha County Sheriff’s Office and officers with the Seneca Police Department found the priest injured outside the rectory with gunshot wounds, KSNT reported. Emergency responders took Father Carasala to a hospital where he died.
During the Mass for Fr. Carasala, Archbishop Joseph Naumann noted Father Carasala's dedication to the church and its congregation; "There really are no words for an occasion like this," he said, adding, "It takes a lot to be a priest today. It requires heroic love."
Sources: NCR and America Magazine
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