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The diocese of Blois said Rev Etienne Doat, one of three priests serving Montoire and the surrounding countryside has last week been suspended after being named a suspect in the theft of about 40 valuable chalices and other sacred vessels.
According to the local daily Nouvelle Republique, the stolen goods included chalices, patens, monstrances and ciboria, objects usually plated with gold or silver that is used in Catholic liturgies. Some dated back to the 1600s and were registered as national heritage objects.
Fourteen churches in and around the town of Montoire, west of Orleans in central France, reported the thefts of the vessels.
The parishes said no break-in occurred at the churches.
“We are investigating so as to list all the objects and find out where they have gone,’’ a police spokesman said on Monday.
Other things suspected to be stolen by the priest was some parish collection money in the churches under his care.
French churches, especially in the countryside, are regularly robbed of valuable art because they are often empty and without proper security equipment.
Stolen religious art is often sent abroad, where it can be more easily sold, but many churches have registered their valuable objects so they can be traced. (Reuters/NAN)
