Ottawa’s St. Martin de Porres Parish has called for continued prayers as messages of support for the church continue to pour in from various religious communities after another act of vandalism was reported at the end of last month.
The Catholic church in the Bells Corners neighbourhood of Ottawa announced online that it had endured a second act of vandalism, just over one week after a similar incident took place. A Facebook post from the parish on July 27 showed the exterior of the building defaced with spray paint.
“Sadly, our church’s difficult summer continues. Fr. Titus asks for prayers for those responsible,” the Facebook post read.
The yellow spray-painted markings appear to be of a crescent moon and star, an unofficial yet well-known symbol of Islam.
Imam Anver Malem, the president of nearby Jami Omar Mosque, expressed his condolences to St. Martin de Porres over the recent act while condemning similar actions from others.
“This is extremely disturbing and it may provoke others to react, as we know there are many who are misguided in their understanding of worldly affairs,” Malem’s statement began. “I hope and pray that this is the last of what we have seen recently. We are with you and please let us know if we can do anything for the church.”
Rev. Kim Vidal of nearby Bells Corners United Church also offered her thoughts and prayers following the incident, wishing that St. Martin’s would be strengthened by the love and support of the interfaith community.
“We thank Rev. Kim Vidal of Bells Corners United Church and Imam Anver Malem of Jami Omar Mosque for their support for us during a difficult time for our church,” a separate statement from the parish read. “We are grateful for the support of our local mosque and from our fellow Christian churches. This will only bring all faith communities in Bells Corners closer together.”
St. Martin de Porres also saw various members of Jami Omar, Bells Corners United Church and Christ Church Bells Corners attend one of its Masses on July 31, a compassionate display of peace and unity between the faiths.
It was not long ago that St. Martin de Porres dealt with a similar case of vandalism when three of the property’s stained glass windows were smashed on July 16.
According to CTV News, a spokesperson from the Ottawa police confirmed that they were both aware of the incident and are investigating but did not comment on whether the initial vandalism incident was hate-motivated.
Even then, multiple messages of support were offered to the parish almost instantaneously from Imam Malem as well as other Christian churches in Ottawa, showing that despite the disheartening attacks, each local community has been committed to ensuring peace for all since the first instance of discrimination.
Standard services such as Sunday Mass have continued to take place as usual following the most recent incident as the parish hopes the pleas and prayers from its community mark the end of a frightening month.
“We are indeed stronger together,” one of the church’s previous posts read in response to its continued support.
