(This story is updated with information at the end about an arrest in the case.)
A brief reconciliation and blessing ceremony July 16 at St. Jane Frances de Chantal Parish reopened the main chapel less than a week after vandalism and arson damaged the church.
Washington Auxiliary Bishop Roy Campbell Jr. asked God’s blessing on water he would sprinkle on the congregation, the walls and altar of the church “as a gesture of repentance” and a sign of cleansing.
“We deplore the vile deeds committed in this house of the Church and we confess our own sinfulness,” he prayed. “As we do so, may God’s grace come to our aid to change us by a conversion of heart and to give us the power to praise His name by the holiness of our lives.”
St. Jane de Chantal and two other churches on Old Georgetown Road in Bethesda, Maryland, had vandalism early in the mornings of July 9 or 10. Several fires were set outside North Bethesda United Methodist Church around 1:30 a.m. July 9. Grave markers at the cemetery at the adjacent Wildwood Baptist Church were found damaged overnight July 8/9, as well. Around 2 a.m. the following morning, the fire detection system at St. Jane de Chantal brought firefighters to the church. The upholstery of several pews had been set on fire, the Stations of the Cross were taken down from the walls and the tabernacle broken open, pastor Father Samuel Giese told parishioners the following day. Masses July 10 were held inside the school’s gymnasium.
But professional cleaners had the church sufficiently restored by the following weekend and the blessing ceremony the following Saturday evening brought the community back into their sanctuary. The three pews that were set on fire were roped off; the damaged sections covered with black plastic. A very faint smell of smoke lingered and the stations had not been returned to the walls. Father Giese explained that the walls needed further cleaning or perhaps repainting. Otherwise, the church looked very much as it had a week earlier.
In his homily, Father Giese thanked Bishop Campbell and noted that he’s is also pastor of a church, St. Joseph’s in Largo, so he particularly understands the disruption to a parish. The sermon focused on the second reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Colossians and its theme of how St. Paul’s suffering while imprisoned was transformative, as he saw it bringing the Colossians and all the world closer to Christ, by sharing in Jesus’s suffering. St. Paul “believed that whatever Jesus Christ touched would be transformed into something far greater because of Jesus’ divinity.” Just so, the Eucharist transforms bread and wine into Christ’s body and blood, he said.
“The same thing is true for us at this moment in the life of our parish,” Father Giese said, in dealing with the pain and humiliation as the church’s sacred space was “violated and profaned.”
“It can actually be for us a graced moment,” he said, “when we offer it to Christ. When we allow it to be transformed by him it serves as a visible reminder to us and all the world that there is a cost of discipleship. That it doesn’t come without a cost to be paid at times.”
He said he “would not wish any church to experience what we have. But the outpouring of good will and of prayers and of support and encouragement has been so truly humbling, because what we have experienced here has reminded people, not just ourselves, but many people, what is most important in life and to choose the better part that comes from being in the presence of Jesus Christ.”
Such an experience when touched by Christ, Father Giese said, “delivers us from complacency and routine and gives us greater gratitude for what Christ endured for the sake of our sins. I believe that we will never make the Stations of the Cross the same way again here in our church without a consciousness, a greater awareness of Christ’s suffering for our sakes, because we have been touched by Christ.”
“Whatever brings you to your knees can bring you closer to God,” he concluded.
On July 19, Pete Piringer, the public information officer for the Montgomery County Maryland Fire & Rescue Service, said in a statement that a juvenile suspect has been arrested and charged in the Bethesda church arson and vandalism cases, and the matter is being handled in juvenile court.
“There is no ongoing threat to the community in relation to these incidents,” he said.
The Montgomery County Police Department issued a statement saying that the department’s Criminal Investigations Division has been working closely with Montgomery County Fire & Rescue Service and fire and explosive investigators into the arson and vandalism at the two churches along Old Georgetown Road and in the North Bethesda area. A department spokesperson said that since the suspect is a juvenile, they won’t be issuing any details on that person.
In a Washington Post article after the arrest was announced, Father Giese said St. Jane de Chantal Parish was reviewing its security measures. He told the Post that the church would be fine, and he expressed concern for the juvenile suspect and said he hoped that young person will be fine, too.
