Singapore priest stabbed while celebrating Mass

CNA Staff, Nov 11, 2024 / 16:05 pm

Catholic leaders in Singapore are calling for prayers after a priest was stabbed during Mass on Saturday evening. 

Father Christopher Lee, a parish priest of St. Joseph Church in the west-central Singapore region of Bukit Timah, was attacked by a knife-wielding man while celebrating the 5:30 p.m. Mass on Saturday.

Congregants, including the Archdiocesan Emergency Response team, helped subdue the assailant, according to a Nov. 9 statement from the Archdiocese of Singapore. Lee was taken to the National University Hospital by Singapore Civil Defence Force paramedics. He is reportedly in stable condition and is recovering. 

A 37-year-old man with a history of violence and drug-related crimes has been arrested for the stabbing, according to Agenzia Fides, which also reported that police do not believe the incident to be terrorism-related. 

The next day, on Nov. 10, Cardinal William Goh wrote in a pastoral letter that the incident “shows us there are many troubled, confused, and hurting people in the world … [but] at the end of the day, evil will not triumph.”

“This incident has made our Church stronger, bringing our people closer through faith and prayer. It has also reminded us to remain vigilant and not to take our hard-won peace and security for granted. As a community, we will come out of this incident more resilient than ever,” said Goh, who has been Singapore’s archbishop since early 2013 and a cardinal since 2022.

“Going forward, we must continue to work together to preserve religious and racial harmony, and not allow confused individuals to sow seeds of division and fear in our midst. Most of all, we pray and trust in God’s protection and care for all of us in Singapore.”

Still, he acknowledged: “This incident has not only grievously injured a religious leader in a place of worship but has sown fear in the community.” While cautioning that incidents of this type could take place at any time, Goh called on the Catholic community to be “both mentally and operationally ready to guard against them and mitigate the consequences when they do happen.” 

He called on all Catholics to be vigilant and report anything suspicious that they see, and stressed that the Church must strike a balance between the necessary security measures to keep people safe while also ensuring that parishes remain open and accessible. 

“Religious leaders must recognize that as public figures, we bear a certain amount of risk. While we should not take security lightly, we must minister to our flock courageously and without fear. We firmly believe God is in charge of our lives and that he will transform evil to good. We cannot allow evil to paralyze the proclamation of the Gospel,” the cardinal said. 

Goh urged prayers for Lee’s recovery and also prayers for his assailant. He thanked the Singapore Police Force, the Singapore Civil Defence Force, the parishioners who responded, and the medical staff at the National University Hospital. 

“Father Christopher exercised his priesthood as a vicarious sacrifice for us, reminding us not to take the safety of our priests and parishioners too lightly. Indeed, he did not suffer in vain but for the good of us all. This is how God writes straight on crooked lines, transforming what is evil and destructive into something good and salvific,” he said. 

“The consequences could have been worse, but in this case, his life and his critical organs were protected. It is a wake-up call for us all, not just the Catholic Church, but all other religious organizations, to remind their worshippers and members to be more vigilant in looking out for suspicious activity.”

The Episcopal Conference of Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei also expressed its solidarity and promised prayers for Lee, urging the faithful to provide “compassion, support, and comfort” for all those affected by the incident, Agenzia Fides reported. 

Pope Francis visited Singapore as part of a lengthy pastoral trip to southeast Asia in September. The Archdiocese of Singapore has a diverse population of 395,000 Catholics, offering Masses predominantly in English, Chinese, Tamil, as well as other languages native to the region.