Florida Catholic priest accused of biting woman during communion
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A Florida priest is accused of biting a woman during communion because she didn’t take the “prior steps necessary to be given the communion bread,” according to reports.
Police responded to St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in St. Cloud, located just southeast of Orlando, following a morning mass this week.
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A redacted police report said that during communion, the priest denied the woman the bread because “she did not do the prior steps necessary to be given the communion bread.”
When the woman told the priest she did do the prior steps, the priest “became upset and tried to ram the ‘cookie’ in her mouth,” the report said. As the woman went to grab another one, that’s when the priest allegedly grabbed her and bit her, leaving a mark.
A churchgoer’s cellphone video shows the brief altercation between the two.
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However, the priest told officials that the woman attacked him first, saying, “She push[ed] me and grabbed the bowl with the holy hosts, for us is sacred.. and she grabbed all the hosts because she wants to receive for herself which is not permitted.. spreading them all over the floor.”
The priest admitted to biting the woman’s arm after she wouldn’t let go of the communion tray. According to the report, the priest was not arrested but the woman plans on prosecuting.
The police department has turned the incident over to the State Attorney’s Office.
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