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A thief had to have walked past the Blessed Sacrament exposed in the monstrance in the church sanctuary in order to steal chalices, ciboria and other items from the sacristy of St. Lawrence O’Toole Church in Brewster.
But thanks to a quick-thinking employee of a local scrap metal company, the items will be returned to the church.
All told, the thief came away with three gold chalices and six ciboria, which are used to hold the consecrated Body and Blood of Christ at Mass, and also broke into the poor box.
“Thankfully, he didn’t take the Blessed Sacrament,” said Father Richard Gill, pastor. “He didn’t touch that and it was right on the altar. We thought maybe the presence of the Blessed Sacrament kept him from that.”
The theft took place March 7 as daily Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament was taking place at the church. The items weren’t discovered missing until Saturday morning when preparations for Mass began.
The Putnam County Sheriff’s Office was called once the theft was detected. A forensic scientist and detective were sent to the scene, Father Gill told CNY.
The thief sold the sacramental vessels to Brookfield Resource Management, a scrap metal company in Elmsford with a policy of buying and holding items that appear to be stolen until the rightful owner can claim them. The chalices and ciboria are safely accounted for and will soon be returned to the church. They are currently being held by the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office.
The thief was paid a nominal fee for the items, which are valued at about $2,000.
Capt. William McNamara of the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office told CNY that an arrest had not been made as of Monday morning, March 17.
“The thing that really hit everybody was the sense of being violated,” Father Gill said. “It was kind of like someone who gets robbed in their home and the thief goes into the bedroom, which is like the sanctuary of the house. That is what this was like.”
The outpouring of support from parishioners and the community was almost immediate. “People came forward to buy new chalices; they are really generous. It was really very beautiful,” Father Gill said.
He said, “These are our precious sacred vessels. They are not just ordinary instruments, they’re something sacred.”
“It was beautiful to see that faith and belief in the Blessed Sacrament,” he said.
