Vandals target church again in Mississauga

A church in Mississauga’s west end that was vandalized in 2021 in an incident investigated by police as a hate crime has been targeted again.

Merciful Redeemer Parish, located at Glen Erin Drive and Erin Centre Boulevard in Erin Mills, was damaged again on two recent occasions, according to the MPP for the area.

“Heartbroken to hear of two incidents of vandalism at Merciful Redeemer Parish in Erin Mills,” Mississauga-Erin Mills MPP Sheref Sabawy posted to social media last Saturday. “Violence has no place in our province. We stand united against hatred and condemn any crimes targeting places of worship. Everyone deserves to practice their faith without fear.”

Sabawy’s post to X (formerly Twitter) didn’t specify when the most recent incidents of vandalism occurred, nor did it lay out the extent of the damage caused.

No information has yet been received from Peel Regional Police in relation to the latest vandalism at the Mississauga church, which opened to congregants in June 1996.

In late June 2021, the church was vandalized and a subsequent investigation by Peel police determined it to have been a hate crime.

The vandalism, described at the time as crude graffiti, came after controversial remarks were made by a priest during a sermon at the parish.

The graffiti targeted the beliefs of Roman Catholics in general and the role the church played at residential schools.

At the time, the vandalism was believed to likely have been in response to remarks made by a pastor who is no longer with the church. During a sermon, he had discussed “the good that was done” by the Catholic church when it operated the residential schools, which opened in Canada pre-Confederation and existed for more than 100 years.

— with files from Steve Pecar