The Bishop of the Diocese of Quilmes, in the Argentine province of
Buenos Aires, His Exc. Mgr. José Carlos Tissera, informed that on March
10, after the evening Mass, the faithful had just left the parish of St.
John the Baptist, in Florencio Varela neighborhood, when two masked
people threw a plastic bottle filled with gasoline in the aisle of the
church, near the entrance, and set it on fire. "The fire was quickly extinguished by firefighters. Thank God, the fire did cause major damage inside, but the discomfort and confusion created by the smoke lasted a little", says the Bishop of Quilmes.
According to the note sent to Fides, the parish priest, Father Marcelo Eyheramendy, along with the sacristan and the parishioners went to the police station to lodge the complaint.
"Although it is still early to draw conclusions, together with Father Marcelo, we believe that this incident may be related to others that occurred last Wednesday, March 8, against the Metropolitan Cathedral of Buenos Aires and on Friday 10 in front of the Cathedral of La plata", said the Bishop, who concluded: "We condemn similar events that have taken place in recent days, whether or not related to what happened recently in Florencio Varela".
On March 8, during the demonstrations for Women's Day, a group of women launched objects and tried to set fire to the door of the Cathedral of Buenos Aires.
In addition on March 10, a group of women presented a sacrilegious parody featuring the Virgin Mary in front of the Cathedral of Tucuman.