A pro-life display at St. Paul Catholic Church in the St. Louis area was vandalized with red paint between October 2-3. The display, featuring white crosses and a “Pray to End Abortion” banner, was found defaced with red spray paint and a message reading “Pro-life is a lie, you don’t care if people die.” St. Paul Catholic Church, located in Fenton, held a pro-life prayer service on October 1.

Fortunately, there was no permanent damage to the church or school property, and local law enforcement is investigating the incident as vandalism without any suspect information currently available.

Missouri, among nearly a dozen states, implemented a total ban on abortion with limited exceptions after the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022. Since the leaked draft of the Supreme Court’s Roe overturning decision in May 2022, there have been 112 documented incidents of vandalism against Catholic churches, pro-life centers, and organizations across the U.S., including graffiti, property damage, threats, theft, and arson.

The increase in vandalism and intimidation targeting Catholic and pro-life organizations has been escalating since at least 2020, driven by the Supreme Court’s June 2022 decision to return abortion policy decisions to states, resulting in abortion bans in various regions, including Missouri.

National Catholic Register reports:

Father John Nickolai, St. Paul’s pastor, told CNA that there appears to be no permanent damage to the church or school property. 

“The police came here this morning but I haven’t heard any more from them as of 3 this afternoon,” Father Nickolai told CNA in an email.

He said he encourages Catholics to “pray, fast and make sacrifices for the conversion of hearts” in the face of the vandalism.

Officer Adrian Washington with the St. Louis County Police Public Information Office told CNA on Tuesday that the “destruction of property/vandalism is being investigated” and that police do not have suspect information to share at this time.

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