Video: Man Douses Brooklyn Priest With Red Juice During Mass

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK — A man burst into a Brooklyn mass Sunday morning to douse a priest and church altar with a bottle of bright red juice, video shows.

The man disrupted services at St. Anthony of Padua on Manhattan Avenue and Milton Street in Greenpoint about 9:30 a.m., according to the Brooklyn Diocese.

Father Jossy Vattothu was celebrating mass when the man suddenly splattered juice on the altar and his garments, he said.

“During my years as a priest, nothing like this has ever happened," Vattothu said. "It is a miracle that the bread and wine were not damaged, and I was able to continue the Mass."

Police did not immediately respond to Patch's request for more information, but the Brooklyn Diocese reported 94th Precinct police officers arrested the man soon after the incident.

Monsignor Anthony Hernandez, Chancellor of the Diocese of Brooklyn, worried the incident was linked to a surge in anti-Semitic hate crimes in Brooklyn.

"I think right now, people are scared given the current environment of anti-Semitic and anti-Catholic incidents," Hernandez said. “It’s really egregious that somebody would do that at the most sacred part of the Catholic Mass, which is the consecration."

Vattothu, who has has been a priest for more than 10 years, urged parishioners to unite spiritually and physically.

"I am grateful for the parishioners who were so caring and consoled me after Mass," he said. "Sit closer to the altar so that we as a faith community can be more together and make the priest feel more comfortable."