Maryland Priest calls cops to throw black funeral attendees out of a funeral

We hear priests to being kind, benevolent, dedicated holy spirits. These are different individuals from the others we see around, who are dedicated to following a righteous path, in the selfless service to god.

Isn’t that what we’ve all heard or learned of a general conduct of a priest? What else can be expected from such pious souls?

But it is really abrupt for a priest to actually behave in the manner this what this one did, that too, amid a fully-packed church in Charlotte Hall in Maryland. And most shockingly, while overseeing a funeral.

Chances are, most of us who read this story may not actually believe what happened; particularly when it comes to understanding the conduct of someone like a priest of a church, arguably the noblest soul after the almighty one prays to. In fact, have we heard of priests being racist or condemning individuals of a particular skin?

Believe it or not, but an actual priest, serving a funeral in the Charlotte Hall, Maryland did something so repulsive and uncalled for that the funeral had to be brought to a sudden standstill. Here’s what happened. One of the attendees happened to have knocked over a chalice- that too accidentally. This, left the priest enraged who decided to kick out various other attendees. In fact, the most important man at that time in the church didn’t merely stop there. He proceeded to call the police.

It was Agnes Hicks’ desire to be baptised at the Saint Mary’s Catholic Church when she was a child. She also wanted her funeral to happen at the said church. So when the due course of proceedings was underway- the uncalled for episode transpired, leaving the onlookers stunned and at, loss of words.

But, it seems the funeral was going all fine, until one of the attendees- a black person- went ahead to hug another and in the process, erroneously (and purely by accident) managed to topple a chalice. The Pastor in attendance, Michael Briese went on to say, “There is going to be no funeral, everyone get the hell out of my church.”

Meanwhile, as the deceased, Agnes Hicks’ body was being taken out of the church- in a casket- more ignominy was to strike those who had been in attendance. The police had been called by the same pastor- Michael Briese. Revered digital media publication- the Daily Dot- covered the incidence in detail and had the following to share:

The police determined that family had done nothing wrong, and escorted them to a church in another county where they finished the funeral. People have taken to the internet to express their disbelief at Briese’s actions towards the family, some using the #MourningWhileBlack hashtag.

The racist connotation, however, at least, in this case- does not seem like a needless add-on. It remains to be seen whether the same priest who chucked all attendees- mostly black persons- would have resorted to the same vile, uncouth and preposterously uncalled for gesture had there been others in attendance of a different skin colour. That said, the most shocking constituent of the incident is that it’s rather unclear whether the pastor has apologised for his actions.

Forgiveness- they say- is the greatest deed of them all. But one has to have a sense to seek it, to strive toward improving oneself. Has this pastor even realised the extent of emotional damage he would’ve done to those who’d come for nothing else but mourning the loss of their loved one?

But here’s what’s known sufficiently well. Apparently, the Archdiocese of Washington has apologised over the entire issue and called it “uncalled for.” Indeed, it’s not everyday that a grieving family is kicked out from a funeral, that too, from inside a church!