A tabernacle stolen from a Texas church was recovered by authorities outside a Burger King. An image of the tabernacle showed signs of damage where the thieves broke it open. The sacramental receptacle was pilfered of its consecrated hosts, which have not been recovered.
The theft was reported on St. Bartholomew Catholic Church’s Facebook page on May 9. The message called the incident “a heartbreaking time in the life of our parish.” The tabernacle was unaccounted for for two days before it was discovered after having been discarded outside the fast-food restaurant.
Parishioner reaction
Comments from parishioners expressed confusion and frustration over the theft. Tom McRae, a member of the St. Bartholomew congregation since 1986, wrote:
“To whomever stole the Tabernacle from St. Bart’s Catholic Church, this is an insult, you cannot hurt us by doing this. I sincerely hope you know with whom you are dealing with [sic]. You are in our prayers.”
According to Katy Magazine Online, the theft was reported to have taken place overnight on Sunday. While the police have recovered the tabernacle, they have yet to make an arrest or name a suspect. There has, however, been a hint that the investigation is making progress.
Second theft
A tweet by Adrian Fonseca, a producer for the Guadalupe Radio Network, noted that authorities had “the faces” and license plates of the suspects. In the tweet Fonseca also claims that the tabernacle had been stolen for a second time.
The claim of a second theft has yet to be corroborated by any news source. Aleteia will update this article with new information as the development progresses.
Draft opinion
The theft came days after pro-choice activist groups attempted to organize demonstrations that would have disrupted Mother’s Day Masses in Catholic churches across the U.S.. Spurred by the leaked draft opinion of Justice Samuel Alito, which suggested the Supreme Court may soon overturn Roe v Wade, the group Ruth Sent Us tweeted their intention to burn the Eucharist:
And today we celebrate...