Church collapses into chaos as member storms altar and attacks Catholic Priest (video)

A  Catholic priest was attacked by a disturbed gentleman during a Novena in Washington state as the peaceful ceremony collapsed into chaos on Tuesday, Feb. 4. Revered Father David Gaines, parochial vicar at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes in Spokane, Washington, was praying alongside Bishop Thomas Daly when the man launched his attack. The assault occurred during the churchs second night of the Lourdes Novena for Healing, a series of nine days of prayers for healing culminating with the Feast of the Lady of Lourdes, the patron saint of healing, peace and the sick. Footage of the churchs livestream captured the suspect jumping out of his seat in the first row pew and running toward the altar where the celebrants were kneeling.  Father Gaines stood up as the man reached him and landed a punch on his face.  The attacker, who was not identified, fell to the floor as Gaines jumped on top of him to subdue the man. The two wrestled for several seconds before church staff and other worshippers rushed to the aid of the priest.   One of the microphones picked up a witness telling the attacker to calm down. Its OK, buddy, its all right, its OK, the voice added. The rector, the Rev. Darrin Connall, who had been leading the prayer when the attack happened, called for security as the mans screams echoed throughout the cathedral.  The man was handcuffed and led out of the cathedral by several men in attendance as Connall returned to his position and resumed the service with a prayer for that disturbed gentleman. At the end of the service, Connall thanked those who stormed the sanctuary to help the priests. He also notified the congregants that the man was arrested and charged with assault and trespassing. Gaines didnt sustain any injuries in the attack and no one else was injured. Fr. Gaines and Bishop Daly are both doing well. Thank you for all of your concerns and thank you for joining us again for this evenings Novena, the church wrote on Facebook. Whatever his motivation was it wasnt well, so its providential or ironic that we are in these days of healing and in the midst of all this, this happens from a man who needs some sort of healing in his life, Connall told KREM. The celebrants were all back in the cathedral Wednesday night, Feb. 5, for the third night of prayers, where Connall briefly spoke about the attack. Were fine, just a little shaken from last night but today helped, it was a troubling event last night. Connall playfully poked fun at Gaines and suggested he should wear a bandage like the one President Trump wore following his assassination attempt in July 2024. I asked Father Gaines to process in tonight with a square bandage over his ear, I wouldve done it but Father Gaines has more integrity, the priest said to laughs from the audience. The man is expected to appear in court on Thursday, Feb. 6, the outlet reported. No motivation for the attack was revealed. Watch the video below.  An attack on a Catholic priest at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes in Spokane during Mass was captured on camera leading to the arrest of a man. Video: KHQ Local News pic.twitter.com/EKIQsnMcz2 Sachin Jose (@Sachinettiyil) February 6, 2025   A Catholic Priest was attacked in the state of WashingtonPray for those involved pic.twitter.com/mFbpZaZQBj JMT (@SecretFire79) February 6, 2025  The post Church collapses into chaos as member storms altar and attacks Catholic Priest (video) appeared first on Linda Ikeji Blog.