Parishioners Forgive Vandals Who Decapitate Jesus Statue at Louisiana Catholic School

The police department in Lockport, Louisiana, are asking for the public's help in finding the vandals responsible for decapitating a statue of Jesus Christ. Officers were called to the campus of Holy Savior School on September 13, 2023, and discovered the head of the statue was missing. Lockport is located east of Houma.

According to an article written by Gina Christian and published in Northwest Catholic, the statue is roughly 50 years old. Fr. James Rome, parochial administrator of Holy Savior Parish in Lockport, said the statue contained no rebar. Because it was securely fastened to the ground, the vandals weren't able to upend the entire statue. He told the OSV reporter it appeared that the ne'er-do-wells may have struck the back of the head to knock it off.

Interesting, the Gospel reading for the following Sunday was the "Parable of the Unforgiving Servant." Jesus tells His disciples a story about a servant who begged his master for mercy because he couldn't repay a debt. The master granted forgiveness, but the servant then refused to forgive the debt of another servant who owed a smaller amount.

Fr. Rome encouraged his parishioners to forgive the vandals as Jesus forgave them for their transgressions, telling Gina Christian:

 We're just going to use this weekend's Gospel as an opportunity to reach out with forgiveness, and realize who the real enemy might be working behind this. We hope that person can come to some metanoia, some change.

His congregation took his words to heart, placing flowers and a sign on the beheaded statue of Jesus.

Lockport Police ask that anyone with information contact their department through Facebook messenger or by calling 985-532-2808.