The day following the stabbing of a bishop at a Sydney church, a forensic expert meticulously combed a fingerprint brush over a nativity scene near the church entrance. Outside Christ The Good Shepherd Church, a small car bore the scars of the previous night’s violence, with its window screen shattered—a stark reminder of the horrific incident that unfolded in the western suburb of Sydney.
Around 7:00 PM the night prior, chaos erupted as a 16-year-old boy emerged from the congregation of the Orthodox Assyrian Christian church and launched a frenzied attack on the leading bishop during the sermon. Allegedly shouting in Arabic “in the name of the Prophet,” he stabbed Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel and assaulted another priest and church members who attempted to intervene.
The entire ordeal was captured on a live stream, broadcasted over the internet to the local congregation and beyond, rapidly disseminating throughout Assyrian, Maronite, Catholic, and Coptic Christian communities.
Following the attack, hundreds of supporters descended upon the church, clashing with police who had arrived on the scene and detained the teenager. The mob, demanding the release of the teenager, inflicted injuries upon the officers attending to the victims.