Martha Elson

@MarthaElson_cj

St. James Catholic Church in the Highlands is closed this week after vandals forced open the front door and sprayed the altar, organ and other areas of the church with the chemical spray from a church fire extinguisher.

The incident happened between about 3:30 and 4 a.m. Monday, and the chemicals from the extinguisher set off the fire alarm, which summoned the fire department, church staff member David Doll said Tuesday morning. Doors to the church were posted with signs reading: "Church is closed. Please Do Not Enter."

A chemical smell permeated the air, and chemical-type dust was spread around on the floor at the church, 1826 Edenside Ave., at Bardstown Road in the Tyler Park area. A restoration company will be working on the church this week.

At least it was not graffiti, "praise God," organist Phil Hines said.

The attack was startling, given that church is doing well -- growing and becoming a popular place for weddings, including one held Saturday, Hines said.

Organ builder Pete Webber also was at the church to survey the damage, saying along with Hines that the spray appeared mostly to be on the keyboard and wooden console of the organ.

As to who might be responsible, no one knew of any "disgruntled" people associated with the church.

Hines speculated that it could have been someone leaving the bars along Bardstown after the last call, or Doll said it possibly could have been members of the homeless population who sleep in the doorways of the church. "We kindly ask them to leave," Doll said.

But Hines emphasized that they're treated with great compassion and that the church buys pizza meals for them.

"They're not too interested in causing a ruckus," he said.

The same sort of vandalism with a fire extinguisher occurred at Holy Spirit Catholic Church in the Crescent Hill area, where Hines served for 38 years, and the perpetrators turned out to be teenagers, he said. St. James church officials will discuss ways to enhance security, he said.

The church, which is more than a century old, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was extensively renovated in 2006.