Montreal priest stabbed while celebrating morning mass at landmark oratory
A Catholic priest at one of Canada’s most high-profile churches was stabbed before the eyes of shocked worshippers while celebrating morning mass on Friday.
The mass at the St. Joseph Oratory, a domed landmark towering over Montreal, was being livestreamed on a Catholic channel, Salt + Light Television. A video bearing the channel’s logo shows a tall man in a dark coat and white baseball cap walking calmly between the pews and up the steps into the church sanctuary, then rushing toward Rev. Claude Grou as the priest stands behind the altar.
Rev. Grou, who is rector of the oratory, is seen stepping back to try to avoid the assault, then falling to the ground on his back as he is attacked. He was taken to hospital by ambulance. Police say he sustained minor injuries to his upper body.
The Catholic Diocese of Montreal described his condition as stable. The suspected assailant is in police custody.
“He was very determined in what he wanted to do. He didn’t yell, said nothing, he just unsheathed his knife,” said Adèle Plamondon, who was in the sanctuary when the attack occurred.
She described the assailant as a clean-shaven white man, standing about 6 feet.
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A Catholic priest at one of Canada’s most high-profile churches was stabbed before the eyes of shocked worshippers while celebrating morning mass on Friday.
The mass at the St. Joseph Oratory, a domed landmark towering over Montreal, was being livestreamed on a Catholic channel, Salt + Light Television. A video bearing the channel’s logo shows a tall man in a dark coat and white baseball cap walking calmly between the pews and up the steps into the church sanctuary, then rushing toward Rev. Claude Grou as the priest stands behind the altar.
Rev. Grou, who is rector of the oratory, is seen stepping back to try to avoid the assault, then falling to the ground on his back as he is attacked. He was taken to hospital by ambulance. Police say he sustained minor injuries to his upper body.
The Catholic Diocese of Montreal described his condition as stable. The suspected assailant is in police custody.
“He was very determined in what he wanted to do. He didn’t yell, said nothing, he just unsheathed his knife,” said Adèle Plamondon, who was in the sanctuary when the attack occurred.
She described the assailant as a clean-shaven white man, standing about 6 feet.
