Keningau church forgives vandal, takes attack as divine message  

KOTA KINABALU – The church diocese of Keningau has forgiven the culprit who broke church items in Keningau Saint Francis Xavier Cathedral church yesterday.  

In a press conference live on Facebook today, Bishop Datuk Cornelius Piong and other church leaders said that as Christians following the teachings of Christ, they should be forgiving.  

Piong also said he sees the incident as a message from God that the leaders of the church have been careless about the safety of the church compound, and about the wellbeing of the church members.  

Yesterday, images of damaged statues of Christ, Mother Mary, and several other items seen lying on the floor of the Keningau Saint Francis Xavier church went viral. 

Police later announced that the suspect, a mentally unstable individual, had been arrested.  

The church leaders clarified following the incident, the mother of the culprit came to the church to confess her son’s crime later in the afternoon.  

The mother, they said, had revealed that her son had been suffering from mental illness, and  instinctively felt that it was her son who had damaged the church’s items.  

When she had confirmed that her son was the culprit, she was taken to the Keningau police station to lodge a police report, and her son was later arrested at their home in a village near the church. 

The suspect is still being detained.  

The suspect’s family members also told the church that he had attempted to hurt himself prior to the incident.  

While it is unknown whether the culprit is a member of the church, Piong said that the church will be focusing on spiritual guidance for the individual and his family members.  

He said that the church has left it to police over any action to be taken against the suspect.

Piong also praised the courage, honesty, and sincerity of the mother for coming forward to confess her son’s crime.  

When questioned if the church is going to issue a “sogit” (fine) against the suspect’s family, Piong said: “No, but the church is going to conduct a sogit mass instead to apologise to God for our carelessness. 

“If we weren’t careless, this would not have happened”.  

The sogit mass, he said, is going to be held on July 14, at 7pm at the same church in Keningau.  

Piong said instead of replacing the broken statues, the church had repaired them and placed them at their original positions.  

“We put up the ‘wounded’ statues in hope that they will remind people that we are all wounded and have been hurt in life, and we need God in our lives to fix our wounds,” he added.  

The cross is 46 years old and was placed at the church by Bishop Datuk Simon Fung since the church was built in 1976.  

Piong urged the public members not to condemn the suspect, but to pray for his wellness instead.  –The Vibes, July 8, 2022.