Jinotega, Nicaragua, Jul 25, 2018 / 14:31 pm
Two churches in the Diocese of Jinotega in northern Nicaragua have been desecrated in the past week, amid rising tensions between the Church and the government of president Daniel Ortega.
At a pro-government celebration July 20, Ortega accused the bishops of Nicaragua of plotting a coup, as they have proposed early elections in response to widespread protests against the government.
The Jinotega diocese announced on Facebook that the night of July 22, uknown persons forced open the window of the Sacred Heart chapel of St. Mark the Evangelist parish in San Rafael del Norte, about 15 miles northwest of Jinotega.
They took the tabernacle containing the Blessed Sacrament, without touching anything else, reported Fr. Noé Armando Flores, the parish priest.