The Holy Innocents Episcopal Church in Parmelee stood in some form since 1890 until being destroyed in a fire that reduced it to rubble on its foundation Saturday.
Parmelee is a small, census-designated place of approximately 600 people on the Rosebud Indian Reservation, about 30 minutes from the Nebraska state line. The Rosebud Episcopal Mission was established in 1875 and has 10 active congregations.
The Rev. Lauren Stanley, who serves as Canon to the Ordinary, told The Christian Post that they suspect the church's destruction was an act of arson because the church "had received threats previously from a person p—ed off and said they would burn the church down."
Citing the ongoing investigation, she said now involves the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Stanley said she was not at liberty to disclose the reason why she believes the potential suspect had threatened her church.
Another reason they suspect arson is because that particular area of Parmelee "has a little gang of arsonists going around," Stanley said, adding that "they've burned houses, cars and hay bales" locally.
"Nobody knows how [the fire] started," she said. "What we do know is that our beautiful 133-year-old church is totally gone."
Stanley also noted that the church was vandalized and "desecrated" last December.
Found on Mainstream Media