Thieves have stolen the tabernacle containing consecrated Hosts from the chapel of Aurelia Hospital, a private polyclinic on Rome’s Via Aurelia.
The Vicariate of Rome has condemned it as yet another sacrilegious attack on a church and the Blessed Sacrament.
Sometime between the evening of June 15 and mid-morning on June 16, still-unidentified person or persons stole the entire tabernacle with consecrated hosts from the chapel of Aurelia Hospital, located on the western outskirts of the Italian capital.
The thief also stole the offerings from the chapel’s votive candles.
This act is “not only a theft perpetrated in a sacred space, but a sacrilege that offends the Lord present in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist,” Cardinal Reina wrote in a public letter on June 19. It also “deeply wounds the faith” of the Christian community.
The fact that this sacrilege took place in a hospital chapel makes the offense even more painful, the cardinal said.
“Many sick people, families, doctors, nurses, and healthcare workers find consolation, silence, prayer, and hope” before the Blessed Sacrament.
The theft was discovered around 10am by the hospital chaplain. The heavy tabernacle, which was anchored to its pedestal, was forcibly removed and taken away.
Cardinal Baldassare Reina, the Vicar General of the Diocese of Rome, has asked all the Catholic communities of the diocese to participate in prayers and acts of reparation on Sunday, June 21, 2026, after a sacrilege against the Eucharist.
The act of sacrilege has drawn widespread media attention in part because of where it took place, just a few miles from the Vatican.
(Agencies)
