The suspect, identified as 50-year-old Pawel Olownia, attempted to stab the priest before driving the weapon into the altar, according to a video of the incident posted by the Winnipeg Free Press.
The priest managed to evade the attack and flee.
Several parishioners, including an off-duty Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer, detained the suspect until police arrived, the Winnipeg Free Press reported. No injuries were reported.
Winnipeg Police Service spokeswoman Const. Dani McKinnon described the attack as “extremely unexpected.”
“We don’t often hear of acts of violence occurring within places of worship in Winnipeg,” she said, according to the Winnipeg Free Press.
“Police do not believe that the accused in this matter regularly attended the church or was part of the congregation, so it is more disturbing in that a motive hasn’t been established or may not until [the charges proceed to] court.”
Olownia has been charged with assault with a weapon, possession of a weapon, and disturbance of a meeting.
Court records show he has a criminal history, including a conviction in 2018 for assaulting a peace officer with a weapon.