Churches beef up security due to bell thefts

FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Several parish churches and chapels in the country have tightened their watch over their church bells, which have recently become the favored target of thieves.

Over at the Archdiocese of Pampanga, priests have already been alerted and told to keep a close eye on the bells of their respective parishes, following a report that robbers recently stole an old church bell a church there.

“We alerted our priests to be more vigilant,” said Pampanga Auxiliary Bishop Pablo David in an interview with reporters.

In early January, the San Vicente Chapel in Bacolor town lost not just one, but two of its bells to thieves.

The incident saddened many residents as the bells, they said, had alerted them in the past when they needed to evacuate from lahar flows spawned by Mr. Pinatubo’s eruption in 1991.

David said there were many other incidents of bell thefts in the the province–in the towns of Magalang, Porac and Angeles.

Thieves often target church bells for their historical and material value, according to Fr. Genaro Diwa, executive secretary of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines Episcopal Commission on Liturgy.

“Church bells are quite expensive because of their antiquity and because they are usually made of bronze,” said the priest.

A complete top-quality bell, especially one forged from an alloy like bronze, could fetch a large sum on the scrap metal market alone.

While church bells have also been used as a warning system, they are an important symbol in the Catholic faith, calling on the faithful to Masses, prayers and other community events like weddings or funerals.

The National Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, more popularly known as Baclaran Church in Parañaque City, isn’t taking any chances.

Its rector, Fr. Victorino Cueto, said a guard has been tasked to check on the church’s small bell regularly. “We have a very small church bell and we have a roving guard that checks it,” said Cueto.

For his part, Malolos Bishop Jose Oliveros said he has not received reports of stolen bells in his jurisdiction after they tightened their security measures in churches and chapels following a slew of bell thefts in the past years.

Three years ago, several parishes in Balagtas, Plaridel, Obando, Guiguinto and San Jose del Monte were victimized by bell thieves, he said.

“But now, we have no more problems with our church bells. We strengthened our security and [advised] people to be alert, especially in our barangay chapels,” said Oliveros.