The Diocese of Getafe has reported the theft of a tabernacle containing around 30 consecrated hosts from the chapel of the parish center of Our Lady of the Assumption in Parla (Madrid). The incident took place on Wednesday, October 21, during children’s catechesis sessions, without any of the people present noticing the theft.
Inside the tabernacle was a ciborium holding about 30 small hosts and one large host intended for the Nocturnal Adoration celebrated by the parish community on the third Friday of each month. The perpetrators took the entire tabernacle, located in a chapel of the parish center, about 150 meters from the main church.
The tabernacle disappeared during catechesis
The theft occurred between the first and second catechesis shifts. Several people were present in the parish facilities, including catechists, mothers of the children, and the parochial vicar, Andrés Klonowski, who was working in his office.
However, no one witnessed the theft. The pastor, Orlando Mateos, discovered the disappearance when the second group of children arrived at the chapel to pray.
“Between the first and second group of children, when the second group arrived for prayer, the tabernacle had already disappeared, but no one saw anything, no one knows anything,” the priest explained in statements released by the diocese.
After confirming what had happened, Mateos searched the surroundings of the parish center in case the perpetrators had abandoned the tabernacle nearby.
“I checked all the trash bins to see if they had left it somewhere, or the empty lots—there are many vacant lots in the old part of Parla—but we found nothing,” he recounted.
The parish has filed a report with the National Police, who are investigating the incident. The disappearance has caused deep shock among the faithful, especially due to the presence of the consecrated hosts inside the tabernacle.
The parish fears possible sacrilegious use
The proximity of Halloween, celebrated on October 31, has led the pastor to suggest the possibility that the theft may be linked to satanic practices.
Mateos acknowledges this is a suspicion rather than a confirmed hypothesis, though he believes the timing “makes one think it could be related to something satanic.”
The main concern of the parish community is the fate of the consecrated hosts, whose theft constitutes a grave offense to Catholics, who recognize the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist.
The Observatory for Religious Freedom and Conscience (OLRC) has also expressed concern over the incident. Its president, María García, has called for the case not to be treated as a simple theft and has recalled the religious significance of the tabernacle and the Eucharistic species it contains.
The association has also warned of the risk that the consecrated hosts could be used in sacrilegious acts and has recommended that parishes increase vigilance during this period.
So far, neither the motive for the theft nor the whereabouts of the tabernacle have been confirmed.
Other thefts and desecrations of tabernacles
According to the records of the Observatory for Religious Freedom and Conscience, the Parla case is the seventh episode of tabernacle desecration recorded in Spain during 2026.
The association has registered four cases in Galicia, two in Madrid, and one in Barcelona, the latter coinciding with the arrival of Pope Leo XIV in the city during his apostolic journey to Spain in June.
Among recent incidents is the desecration of the tabernacle at the Church of the Sacred Heart of Mary in Guitiriz, Lugo, which occurred in September, when the consecrated hosts were stolen and scattered across the square near the church.
Read also: They desecrate the tabernacle of a church in Lugo and scatter the consecrated hosts across the square.
The Canon 1382 of the Code of Canon Law establishes the penalty of excommunication latae sententiae, reserved to the Apostolic See, for anyone who desecrates the consecrated species or steals or retains them for a sacrilegious purpose.
While the police investigation continues, the parish of Our Lady of the Assumption hopes to recover the tabernacle and, especially, the consecrated hosts it contained.