The incident occurred just after communion was served at 10am Mass in the Cathedral of the Assumption, Carlow, when a man who’d been sitting at the back of the church walked up the aisle and “went on a rant” before Fr Teo.
A person who was in the cathedral at the time described it was “terrifying”, especially because it escalated so quickly.
“He was shouting about religion and the Holy Spirit in a very loud voice. He went towards the priest in a very threatening manner and was very intimidating,” said the witness, who didn’t want to be named.
“He was so loud that he could be heard from outside the cathedral. It was relentless, dreadful. I just thought to myself that this wasn’t going to end well. I thought that he was going to pull out a knife. It was like the cathedral was under siege.”
The Mass-goers were too terrified to leave the church, but it’s believed about five people phoned the gardaí.
The man eventually began to calm down, and while they waited for the gardaí to come, Fr Teo led the congregation with decades of the Rosary.
“Fr Teo said that the man was clearly not well and we began to say prayers until the gardaí arrived,” she continued.
The man spoke with an accent from the south of the country, possibly from Cork, and was aged in his early 30s.
Those at the Mass were invited into the parish centre to recouperate and to recover from the terrifying experience.
“It was extremely terrifying, it really escalated very quickly. I’ve read about things like that happening, but I never thought I’d experience anything like it. Words can’t describe it, it was so terrifying,” said the woman.
She also said that Fr Teo remained calm and comforting throughout the whole ordeal and managed to keep everything under control until the gardaí came and arrested the man.