Misamis church closure ordered after holy water font spitting incident

MANILA, Philippines — The Archbishop of Ozamis has ordered the temporary closure of the Parish Church of St. John the Baptist in Jimenez, Misamis Occidental after an individual spat at the holy water font.

A viral video of a woman seen spitting into a holy water font sparked outrage among churchgoers and netizens. Archbishop Martin Jumoad regarded the incident as a “grave act of sacrilege.”

READ: Negros Occidental church desecrated; 6 religious images destroyed

“The Parish Church of St. John the Baptist in Jimenez shall remain closed until further notice as a sign of penance and reparation. This is to invoke conversion of heart and communal purification as guided by Catholic teaching,” Jumoad said in a decree published on Tuesday.

In order to restore the sanctity of the church, Jumoad said that a Holy Hour of Adoration and Solemn Confessions will be held on August 7 at 3 p.m.

Jumoan noted that the church will only be reopened once appropriate acts of penance are observed, such as participating in the Holy Hour and confession and the pastoral assessment.

With this, the archbishop said that a serious warning was extended to the individual, emphasizing that violating sacred objects, such as the holy water font “constitutes grave sin and desecration (cf. CCC 2139) and incurs not only ecclesiastical penalties but endangers the sinner’s communion with the Church.”

He also said that immediate confession and sincere repentance must be done “to restore one’s standing in the community of faith.”

Jumoan then urged the faithful to respect the sanctity of sacred objects and places as “vessels of God’s grace.” /cb