RACISM may be the reason a priest was stabbed in the neck moments before he was about to say mass at a Melbourne church.

A man armed with a knife approached Rev Tomy Kalathoor Mathew, 48, in the church foyer moments before the 11am Italian-language mass at St Matthew’s Parish in Fawkner on Sunday.

It’s believed that the offender told the priest that because he was Indian, he must be a Hindu or a Muslim and therefore can’t be saying mass. The Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne said the priest was doing well in hospital and wanted to get back to work soon.

“His thoughts are only for his parishioners,” Vicar General Monsignor Greg Bennet said. “This is appalling behaviour and people should never be treated like this,” archdiocese spokesman Shane Healy told AAP.

Police say the offender, aged in his 50s, remains at large despite witnesses following him down residential streets after the attack.

“At this stage, we believe the incident is isolated. There’s nothing to suggest he’s a danger to anyone else,” Detective Senior Constable Rhiannon Norton told reporters.