(The tabernacle stolen from the St. Catherine of Alexandria Cathedral in St. Catharines, Ont., was recovered the next day. Story here. – Editor)

The Bishop of St. Catharines, Ont., is pleading for thieves to return the consecrated host after the tabernacle was stolen from the St. Catherine of Alexandria Cathedral Tuesday.

In an interview Tuesday afternoon with NewsTalk 610 CKTB, Bishop Gerard Bergie pleaded for the two people who took the tabernacle to return it, along with its contents,

“The tabernacle can be replaced. It’s the contents (...) that is what is so precious to us. That’s what’s irreplaceable,” said Bishop Bergie, adding that he hopes that no harm is done to the Blessed Sacrament.

He hopes that the person or persons who took the tabernacle “realize it’s not of any monetary value” and are “able to return it to us.”

“No questions asked, if they return it,” he said.

The tabernacle is made of steel and has two bronze-coloured doors, said the bishop, who suspects the thieves thought the tabernacle was made of gold or had a more nefarious intent in stealing the hosts.

“Who knows what goes through the minds of these people,” he said.

Video footage captured two people, believed to be a man and a woman, breaking into the cathedral at approximately 4:30 a.m. Sept. 8. As it was dark, the footage is “kind of grainy” and it has been difficult to determine a clear image of the suspects, he said.

Many people have taken to loitering near the cathedral in recent months, Bishop Bergie said.

Father Donald Lizzotti, rector of the cathedral, told CNA he believes the thieves previously cased the cathedral to determine how to steal the tabernacle.

“And they came back later and actually pried the cover, which is over the old metal tabernacle,” he said. “They pried that off and put it on the floor. They took brass doors off of that,” and then finally took the entire tabernacle off of the altar.

He told CNA that police were unable to find fingerprints and believe the thieves wiped the scene clean.

Father Lizzotti said the diocese has contacted scrap yards in the area and informed them about the theft so they know what to look for.

St. Catherine of Alexandria Cathedral was hit by numerous instances of theft and vandalism during renovations in 2019, including the theft of bronze and copper lamp posts almost exactly one year ago.

Father Lizzotti told CNA he does not think the theft of the tabernacle is related to the Sept. 10, 2019 theft, as the perpetrator was arrested after attempting to sell the metal to a scrapyard. That theft was what prompted the cathedral to install numerous security cameras inside and outside the building. 

Extra steps have now been taken to ensure there are no more break-ins.

“We've now secured the one doorway that they got into,” said Father Lizzotti. “We've actually made it completely secure by putting crossbars across the two doors. So they can't pry the doors unless they rip the wood completely out.”