Priest pins down deranged man who attacked him during Adoration

[Stone]

Priest pins down deranged man who attacked him during Adoration
A disturbed man entered a Massachusetts Catholic church on Monday and assaulted the priest, who subdued and forgave him.

Sep 3, 2026
NEW BEDFORD, Massachusetts (LifeSiteNews) – A priest and a congregant subdued a violent man who interrupted Eucharistic Adoration on Monday, with the priest offering his forgiveness after sustaining minor injuries.

Boston ABC affiliate WCVB reports that 59-year-old Jose Nascimento entered Mount Carmel Church and began knocking items off the altar. The priest, Fr. Chris Peschel, confronted him, at which point the intruder allegedly physically attacked him and warned, “You’re dead. You’re a dead man. I have one bullet in my backpack” (which was not true, according to investigators).

The priest was punched in the face and hit with a beer can during the struggle, during which congregant Joao Debrito stepped in to help subdue Nascimento.

“As soon as I see the fight, so I jump in and then I go to help the priest,” Debrito said. “I grab the guy, make sure I don’t fight the priest and hold him down. Make sure the priest call the police. The police came, and they take over.”

“I’m doing well and am at St. Luke’s Hospital getting some things checked out. Yes, a man attacked me at confessions and adoration this evening after he tried to steal the monstrance,” Fr. Peschel later said in a Facebook post. “I forgive him. I am just glad nobody else was hurt. I pinned him down until the police arrived. NBPD, the ambulance crew, and the staff at St Luke have been great. I am alright, thank you all again.”

Nascimento has been charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, assault and battery, threat to commit a crime, disturbing the peace, and disorderly conduct.

At this point, there appears to be no deeper motive at work in this case than a mentally disturbed individual lashing out.

“On Wednesday, a judge ordered Nascimento to be further examined at Bridgewater State Hospital for a 20-day period,” WPRI reports. “According to an expert opinion, he lacked behavioral control and an understanding of the events that were happening at the time.”