Thread by @inesanma

Chile: Earlier today, protestors entered the Church of the Ascension, in downtown Santiago, taking paintings and and pews, to set up barricades, reportedly in an attempt to burn down the nearby University Pedro de Valdivia.
(A thread)

During the past three weeks, hundreds of thousands in Chile took to the streets to protests the country’s situation, particularly the inequality in what has often been considered the most stable and one of the wealthiest countries of Latin America.

The opposition has suggested there’s a need to reform the country’s constitution, a measure supported by many within the Catholic Church, including Bishop Celestino Aos, apostolic administrator of Santiago, who said there’s “no doubt” the constitution needs to be modified.

But amidst the social revolt, some also turned against the Church - an institution that has lost much of its credibility in the country due to the mishandling of the clerical sexual abuse crisis.

The church that was vandalized today, in recent days, saw some writing its walls with phrases such as “rapist priests,” and others threw green paint bombs, the color of the pro-abortion campaign in the continent.

Yet a nearby church, the Parroquia de la Vera Cruz, was also vandalized in recent days, with paintings in its walls reading “we will burn you down,” “free abortion,” “abort the priest,” “priest burn,” “silence in the Church when everyone dies,” and “God doesn’t exists.”

Aos released a statement about the attack, describing it as “very grave” and asked for special prayers for father Pedro, an elderly priest who tends to both parishes. The priest was inside of the church vandalized today, at least the second time the attackers went in.

Pictures courtesy of @acn_int. The parish priest of both churches is the ecclesiastical aid of this papal charity in Chile.

A few more images of what happened yesterday in Chile. According Father Narbona Narbona, in Nov. 1 protesters had tried to set the church on fire, but he was able to call the firefighters.

Further background on what has been happening in #Chile for the past 22 days.
cruxnow.com/church-in-the-…

Today, as per the thread from @Iglesiastgo, in an spontaneous support of the church that was attacked, dozens of people showed up to clean, paint the walls.

Hortencia Cereceda told @Iglesiastgo: "the Church is not just the walls, it's all of us who want a change. We have to once again encounter one another and understand that violence is not the way to solve things. I'm in for building a concept of a united country that's in peace."