Brighton Church Vandalized

Last month, Our Lady of the Presentation Church on Washington Street in Brighton was vandalized according to Boston Police. Some time between the afternoon of November 23 and the morning of November 25, vandals broke into the church and defaced many of the religious objects within.

Among these was a portrait of Pope John XXIII, whom Pope Francis will be naming a saint in April. The portrait was slashed, and several expletives were scrawled on it such as “F*** God” and “Devil’s Star.” In addition, much of the interior was covered in residue from two fire extinguishers. The organ and a window were also completely destroyed. Upon entering, the vandals also damaged the custom doors to the church. The estimated total damage to the building was around $150,000.

Police now suspect that teenagers are the culprits due to security footage which shows three youths breaking into the church. Strangely, left behind at the seen by the culprits were two bags of chips, a bottle of Sprite, a water bottle, and a half-empty bottle of Italian wine.

The church is owned by Saint John’s Seminary, which is located right next to Boston College’s Brighton Campus on Lake Street. Saint John’s currently uses the church building as a lecture hall for its seminarians. They released the following statement to the press:

“Recently Our Lady of the Presentation Lecture Hall was vandalized. The building and the former rectory are assets of Saint John’s Seminary. Surveillance cameras recorded individuals breaking into the building. A copy has been provided to the police. The building is secure at this time and the police are conducting a full investigation in hopes of catching those responsible.”

The Boston Police are still actively searching for the three suspects in the surveillance footage. They have asked any one with relevant information to call the following number: (617) 343-4256.