A Catholic school in Southern California is reeling after a severe act of vandalism left sacred spaces desecrated and devotional materials destroyed, prompting a federal civil rights investigation and an outpouring of prayerful response from the local Church.
Federal officials confirmed this week that they are investigating the vandalism at Holy Innocents Catholic School in Long Beach, California. Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon announced on Feb. 2 that the Department of Justice’s civil rights division “will open an investigation into [the] awful crime,” according to EWTN News.
The damage was discovered early on the morning of Feb. 2 by the school’s principal, Cyril Cruz, who described extensive destruction in the hall where the school community regularly gathers for Mass. “Our statue of the Virgin Mary was smashed, and the tabernacle was removed and thrown to the floor in an apparent attempt to force it open,” Cruz said, according to EWTN News. She added that “the atrium lovingly prepared by the Carmelite Sisters for our scholars was completely destroyed.”
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Additional areas of the school were also targeted. Audio and lighting equipment were torn from the walls, musical instruments and speakers were loaded onto carts, and liturgical books used daily by students were soaked and rendered unusable. Photographs shared with EWTN News showed overturned shelves, scattered Mass materials, and widespread disorder throughout multiple rooms.
Despite the severity of the vandalism, clergy emphasized that the Blessed Sacrament was not harmed. Father Peter Irving, pastor of Holy Innocents Catholic Church and School, told EWTN News that while the tabernacle was damaged, it was not opened. “The tabernacle was not breached although it was left damaged,” he said. Irving added that investigators told him “this was the worst desecration that they have seen.”
Los Angeles Auxiliary Bishop Marc Trudeau was scheduled to celebrate a reparation Mass at the school on Feb. 3, according to EWTN News. Father Irving was also set to lead a Eucharistic procession around the campus, describing it as a way for the community to entrust itself to Christ and respond “with prayer, faith, and hope.”
The incident has drawn national attention, and a GoFundMe campaign launched to assist with recovery efforts had raised nearly $76,000 by the morning of Feb. 3, according to EWTN News. The campaign cited Bishop Trudeau as describing the incident as “the worst case of vandalism that he’s ever seen in the region.”
In the face of devastation, school leaders highlighted the unity and faith of the community. Cruz told EWTN News that students, families, and members of the Knights of Columbus came together to clean and restore the damaged hall so that Mass could once again be celebrated. She also said the school community gathered to pray the rosary “for healing and also for the conversion and mercy for those who committed this act.”
“We are grateful no one was physically harmed, and we are responding as a faith community with prayer, reparation, and trust in Christ,” Cruz said, according to EWTN News.
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