Law enforcement officials are investigating a “suspicious” incident on Easter Sunday in front of a Tennessee church, where a trailer full of hundreds of Bibles was intentionally set on fire.
Around 6 a.m. on Easter Sunday, the security cameras at the Global Vision Church reportedly caught a man dropping off a trailer in the middle of the intersection, blocking the entrance to the church.
A man reportedly then set hundreds of Bibles on fire in front of the church in Mount Juliet, Tennessee.
The church’s pastor, Greg Locke, said in a statement on Facebook: “There was a lady that had driven through the night to get to our church and she was in the parking lot and was able to get the police officers here quickly, but it was quite the scene to wake up to on my first morning back from Israel.”
The Mt. Juliet Police Department and Fire Department responded to the trailer fire and extinguished the blaze. The Bible fire caused temporary road closures.
There were no injuries from the trailer fire, and the church property did not incur any damage.
Easter Sunday services at the Global Vision Church were not interrupted.
Locke told the Tennessean, “It did not, nor will it stop us. It was cleaned up in time for people to drive into the parking lot. We had a full house and a marvelous service.”
The Wilson County Sheriff’s Office noted that the trailer fire was “suspicious” and done “intentionally.” Police did not provide a motive for the Bible burning or if the church was the intended target.
Police said no other specific details could be provided at this time in an effort to “uphold the integrity of the ongoing investigation,” but updates would be shared at “the appropriate juncture.”
Locke declared, “It was 100 percent directed at (Global Vision Bible Church). It blocked the entrance to our campus and the fact that it was an entire load of Bibles is rather conclusive proof that is was most assuredly directed at us.”
Locke told WKRN-TV, “It was strange because he [the suspect] had his blinkers on and he scotched the wheels and everything. He was very meticulous, so he had to be very courageous to do what he did. We’ve had people do things to our building, we’ve been vandalized a number of times, hence why we have to have security, but never 200 Bibles being burned. That’s a pretty rebellious statement towards the church.”
The pastor proclaimed, “If you think Christianity is not under attack more than ever before in the United States of America, you have not been paying attention.”
“What people think many times is going to stop us, really just encourages us, in a weird way, to know that we’re doing what’s right,” Locke stated.
Police are urging anyone with information or footage of the incident to contact the Wilson County Sheriff’s Office at 615-444-1459.
Last week, Locke appeared on “The Steve Deace Show” airing on BlazeTV to have a discussion about faith.
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Trailer of Bibles burned on Easter Sunday in Wilson County
Hate crime, Hate crimes, Easter sunday, Bibles, Bible burning, Faith, Religion, Christianity, Tennessee, Global vision church, Greg locke, News
