|
Read News
|
Pocono News Section
Vandals Force Church Service to Move
Vandals Force Church Service to Move - Sunday, May 30, 2010 at 04:02AM EST
Reported by: Laurie Monteforte
Sunday May 30 2010
MILLVILLE, COLUMBIA COUNTY - Vandals forced a Columbia County church to move it's Sunday services to a different building.
Someone went into the unlocked Millville United Methodist Church late Friday or early Saturday and tore the place apart. Parishioners attended service at the nearby Greenwood United Methodist Church.
Vandals wrecked a church building but they didn't wreck the church spirit. Pastor Richard Leonard asked his congregation to pray for the vandals. He said, "Please be positive. Please be forgiving."
Then he showed Eyewitness News the damage. Vandals broke a special cross, desecrated the altar, splattered paint on the walls and flipped equipment.
They also sprayed fire extinguishers all over the building. Pastor Leonard said,"Everything was covered in that fine dust - it made it hard to breathe - there was a cloud in there earlier."
Church members couldn't believe the mess. Karl Girton asked, "What could possibly possess anyone, an adult or a child, to engage in that type of behavior?"
Many believe the vandals are kids. Girton said, "I think probably this is some young people who truly need some counseling, some understanding, some help."
That's why Pastor Leonard's initial anger turned to compassion. He said,"There's really no hard feelings, a little bit of disappointment."
But he does want them to pay for the damage. It could cost more than three thousand dollars to clean and fix everything. He explained, "I'm not out for retribution but neither do i think they should be slapped on the back of the hands and sent on their way."
Pastor Leonard said he welcomes the vandals to come back to the church - for services. He said, "People care about you and love you, come tell us who you are and we'll do what we can to help you."
The pastor said he likes to keep the church unlocked for people who need to pray but that might have to change now.
A clean up crew is scheduled to arrive tuesday and services should resume as normal next weekend.
| | |
|
|
|