Priest Bites Woman in Fight Over Communion Wafers, Cops Say

A Catholic priest bit a woman during a dispute over communion wafers at Sunday mass, according to police in St. Cloud, Florida. The 66-year-old priest was giving communion at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church when the religious service spun out of control. A woman who was trying to receive communion told investigators the priest had refused her, telling her she “did not do the prior steps necessary.” “In response ... she attempted to grab another communion bread which (the priest) was holding. However, (he) grabbed her and bit her arm,” a police affidavit reads. The priest described a drastically different series of events to police, telling them the woman had already been told earlier that day she could not participate in communion but that she came back and “attacked” him and “grabbed” the tray of communion wafers. The priest reportedly told investigators he felt he had no choice but to protect the wafers because it is “considered sacrilege” for just anybody to grab them, as the bread is considered “the body of Christ” to Catholics. Witnesses reportedly backed up his version of events, and local prosecutors are now deciding whether or not he will face charges of simple battery.

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