France: Historic church gutted in arson attack

The Church of the Immaculate Conception - a major landmark in Saint-Omer. Wiki Image from Panoramio/38604725 by Jean Marc Gfp

The Church of the Immaculate Conception in Saint-Omer (Pas de Calais) has been gravely damaged following a fire which started in the early hours of Monday 2nd September.

A hundred and twenty firefighters battled to extinguish the fire which had started around 4.30am, finally succeeding some three hours later.

A 39-year-old man, a multiple arsonist recidivist, was taken into custody on Monday evening and has since acknowledged responsibility.

On Wednesday morning, Olivier Leborgne, Bishop of Arras, Boulogne and Saint-Omer, came to offer "support and consolation", leading a shocked community in prayers in front of the stricken Church before presiding at a Mass in the Basilica of Our Lady of Miracles close by.

Dating back to 1859, the Church of the Immaculate Conception was hailed "a remarkable neo-gothic-inspired building" but the onslaught of the fire has been severe. The church roof, the spire and a 19th-century Merklin organ went up in smoke, leaving a gaping hole over the nave. Apart from the outer stone walls, virtually nothing remains.

In the aftermath of the blaze, Fr Sébastien Roussel, the parish priest, was able to successfully retrieve the consecrated and reserved Blessed Sacrament from inside the church. 'This calls to mind [the fire] of the Cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris,' he lamented.

Edith, a faithful parishioner who loved to pray in the Lady Chapel, spoke of her emotion. "My daughters made their First Holy Communion here, were baptised here. I feel bereft."

Hervé Guéguen, a deacon from Pas de Calais, said: "It's a great disaster. The Church had just been renovated. The blue-stone interior was sober and magnificent."

Bishop Leborgne had assured distressed parishioners and the local community on Monday that he was joining them in prayer, adding: "I entrust everyone - residents of Saint-Omer, firefighters and professionals assuring the safety of people and places - to the Virgin Mary, to whom this church is dedicated."

The arsonist has admitted to smashing a stained-glass window to break and enter the church with the aim of stealing money from collection boxes.

According to Mehdi Benbouzid, the procurator of the Republic for Saint-Omer, the suspect, a 39-year-old French national, had come out of prison at the end of August following 'a long incarceration' for several 'robberies and criminal damage'. He had previously been found guilty of 'destruction by fire' on several occasions, and notably for 'damage to a religious building.'

François Decoster, the Mayor of Saint-Omer (Pas-de-Calais) gave thanks for "small miracles". Cherished church furniture including the altar, a confessional booth and the stations of the cross were successfully evacuated and were relatively unscathed.

"We are waiting for experts to come and carry out a more sophisticated analysis," said the mayor, the first priority right now being to secure the church's façade.

Started in 1859, the Church of the Immaculate Conception was built in the Faubourg de Haut-Pont, situated north of the city centre. Mayor Decoster said : "Known affectionately as Our Lady of the Faubourgs [Suburbs], the church plays a very significant role in the life of this community." Closed in 2015 due to safety concerns, it underwent significant restoration for five million Euros, and was re-opened in 2018.

Coinciding with the Bishop's visit on Wednesday , Mayor Decoster launched a fund-raising drive with the Fondation du patrimoine (Heritage Foundation) to finance future restoration works. The inferno has been witnessed by millions across the world on social media.

In France, local communities are responsible for the upkeep of places of worship built before 1905 (the year of the separation of Church and State in France and the inception of the French 'secular state').

Speaking to France Bleu Radio the mayor said: "Our church is crucial to our identity, a landmark in our daily lives."