Saturday, April 3, 2021

Police entered the Polish church in London. They interrupted the Liturgy


 On Good Friday, while celebrating the Liturgy of the Lord's Passion at the Polish church in Balham, London, the police entered the temple.

The parish issued a statement on the matter, describing on its website the event that occurred on Friday, April 2:

"At the time of the Adoration of the Cross, the police arrived at the door of our Church at about 6 p.m. We were not allowed to finish the celebration. The policemen found our liturgical assembly illegal, ordering everyone to leave our Temple immediately or face a penalty of £ 200 or even arrest. The faithful obeyed this order without objection," we read in the parish's statement.

 "We believe that municipal police officials have been misinformed about the current guidelines for places of worship, claiming that the reason for their intervention is the London ban on public celebration in places of worship due to the lockdown introduced from January 4, 2021," the parish authorities explained.

"We regret that the rights of the faithful were wronged on such an important Day for every believer, and our cult was profaned. We informed the superiors of the Polish Catholic Mission in England and Wales about this incident. We asked the police authorities to explain the incident, and we are waiting for their response."