Bishop Farly Yovany Gil Betancur, Bishop of Montelíbano Diocese, Colombia, declared condemnation of acts of vandalism that occurred against statues of the Virgin Mary. The two vandalized statues of the Virgin Mary were located in La Lucha and at the entrance to the Colombian municipality of Montelíbano.
The bishop emphasized the right to religious freedom and said that these repeated actions hurt Christians. The Diocese of Montelíbano has sent a complaint to the competent authorities to request an investigation of the incident. Finally, the Bishop asked God to grant conversion to those who committed this act.
In the news sent out on December 17, Fides news agency of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples said: Advent presents the Virgin Mary as a woman waiting, with indescribable love, to fulfills the promise of salvation, for this reason “it causes great indignation and sadness, in this time of joy and hope. The desecrators pushed the statues of the Virgin Mary off their pedestals and completely destroyed them.”
In a statement on December 16, Bishop Farly Yovany Gil Betancur, Bishop of Montelíbano, Colombia, declared and condemned the acts of vandalism that occurred against the statues of the Virgin Mary in the La neighborhood. Lucha and at the entrance to the municipality of Montelíbano, a neighborhood of Alto San Jorge Cordobés. In his statement, the Bishop complained that “acts of religious intolerance, which threaten freedom of worship, have occurred repeatedly. These actions have deeply damaged the faith of Christians in the Montelibanese community."
Furthermore, he emphasized that “religious freedom seeks the good of all, when differences are respected and when different expressions of faith are accepted. We all have the right to our own beliefs and to express them according to our own traditions and customs.” The diocese filed a complaint with the competent authorities, requesting an investigation into these events that “demonstrated a blatant attitude of religious intolerance.” Finally, the Bishop prayed to God for "the conversion of those who committed this criminal act" and called on the faithful in the diocese to "join in prayer for those who committed these acts." violent religious fanatics, so that they change their minds and so that such acts are not repeated, hurting the religious sentiments of a people rooted in faith.”
Source: Vietnamese Catholic News