The cash was being kept in a safe in the priest’s bedroom
on the church premises. Father Aurelio Ayala (36) who is the priest-in-charge
of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Kumalo, filed a police report after
discovering that the money was missing on 28 January. Although Bulawayo police
spokesperson Inspector Abednico Ncube could not immediately comment on the
issue, Fr Ayala confirmed the incident to Sunday News yesterday.
“I can confirm that US$15 000 belonging to the church was
stolen from a safe in my bedroom. I reported the matter to the police and investigations
are underway. I can also confirm that my assistant Fr Edwards was recently
taken for enquiry by the police although this is not necessarily to say he is
the suspect. He was questioned and released,” said Fr Ayala.
The incident, however, seems to have opened a can of worms
with allegations and counter- llegations flying thick and fast as congregants
take sides in what a source said could be a result of deep-seated factional
wars.
“The church is currently conducting ‘novena’ prayers. In
Christianity, novena is a term designating a spiritual devotion consisting of
the recitation of a set form of prayer for nine consecutive days, in petition
for a divine favour or in preparation for a liturgical feast or as
participation in an important event such as a Year of Jubilee. It is during
these ongoing prayers that the congregants have amplified various allegations.
Right now, the church is drowning in debt. There are water bills amounting to
millions (ZW$) yet there was money kept in the bedroom,” said a source.
Responding to adultery allegations levelled against him, Fr
Ayala said a faction of the church was peddling the allegations following the
disappearance of the money.
“I have heard those allegations but they are not true.
People started peddling them after the money disappeared. I am not involved in
any adultery or whatsoever relationship, the allegations are false,” said Fr
Ayala.
In January last year, thieves broke into the Roman Catholic
Church’s St Andrew’s Parish in Kingsdale, Bulawayo and stole sacred vessels
used to conduct mass. They stole ciboriums (metal vessels), which are
considered the most important aspect of the Catholic service. The theft
occurred just three weeks after armed robbers raided the same church and
attacked its priest, forcing him to spend the night at the neighbouring
Marianhill Institution, an organisation that houses Catholic priests. A number
of churches in the city have also fallen prey to thieves who have taken various
amounts of money, with police urging churches and businesses to avoid keeping
large sums of money in offices or at home, and instead, bank the money. Sunday
News
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