Crucifix, Virgin Mary, and US flag attacked at two Catholic centers in Brooklyn

Daniel Tseng / Unsplash

A crucifix dedicated to the late mother of a New York monsignor was vandalized in Brooklyn. Three days later, a Virgin Mary statue was also vandalized in that county, leading Governor Andrew Cuomo to condemn the attacks.

The holiest picture of the Catholic tradition, a statue of Jesus dying on the cross, was crushed, and an American flag was burnt outside St. Athanasius Church on Bay Parkway at 61st Street in Bensonhurst on Thursday night. The act was described as a potential hate crime by the police, who said the unnamed perpetrator leaped over the church fence before smashing the holy symbols.

Mrs. Fay Cassato's crucifix was built and dedicated to her in the cemetery in 2010, one year after her burial. According to police, a vandal pulled down the portrait of Jesus, ripped it to shreds, and set fire to the American flag that hung outside the rectory.

“My mother spent the last two years of her life living in the rectory,” Monsignor David Cassato told The New York Post following Saturday morning Mass while choking back tears. “She was sick with cancer, and she became so friendly with everybody that when she passed, people wanted to do something to keep her memory alive, and that is the reason we dedicated the cross to her.”

The statue of the Virgin Mary carrying the baby Jesus was vandalized in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn just three days after the first assault.

According to police, a diocese employee at 310 Prospect Park West found the portrait of the baby Jesus had been beheaded for the first time on Sunday. However, it was not immediately clear when the attack happened. This is being prosecuted as a hate crime as well.

Governor Cuomo reacted to the attack by issuing a statement. "I am disgusted to learn that St. Athanasius Church, a historically Italian American place of worship in Brooklyn, has been vandalized.

These acts of hate should offend and outrage every New Yorker, and I want the Bensonhurst community to know we will do everything we can to bring the cowardly vandals responsible for this to justice. Hate has no place in our state, and as New Yorkers, we celebrate our diversity."

Follow me to see more articles like this.

...

Follow