Trailer with hundreds of bibles inside are set on fire and left outside Tennessee church on Easter Sunday
A trailer containing hundreds of Bibles was set on fire and left outside an evangelical church in Tennessee on Easter Sunday.
Officers from the Mount Juliet Police Department and Fire Department responded to a suspicious fire at the intersection of Old Lebanon Dirt Road and Chandler Road outside Global Vision Bible Church.
Officers reported that the trailer was dropped off in the middle of the intersection and “intentionally” set on fire. WKRN news reported.
Pastor Greg Locke of Global Vision Bible Church, who had returned from Israel a day earlier, was shocked to hear what happened at his church on Holy Day.
The Easter weekend – including Easter Sunday and Good Friday – is the holiest holiday on the Christian calendar.
The trailer of holy Bibles that were set on fire and left outside the Global Vision Bible Church
About 200 holy books were burned in front of the church. Pictured: a close-up of the charred verses. The incident took place on Easter Sunday, part of the holiest holiday weekend in the Christian calendar
Mount Juliet fire and police arrived on scene early Easter Sunday morning. The black, burned trailer is seen being handed over by first responders
Locke told his members in a Facebook post that the church’s security cameras caught a man delivering a trailer full of Bibles at 6 a.m. Easter morning before setting fire to the trailer and the Bibles.
Locke, who lives close to the church, said he didn’t know what happened until he arrived at the church Sunday morning.
On his social media post, he posted photos of the burned Bibles, fire trucks and police vehicles that responded to the disturbing incident.
He wrote that a woman, who had driven all night to get to their church, was in the parking lot as the fire raged and was able to call police who responded quickly.
“A trailer containing approximately 200 Bibles had been set on fire and was blocking the entrance to Old Lebanon Dirt Rd. and Chandler Radford Rd. to the main part of our parking lot,” the pastor said.
He added: “It was quite a scene to wake up on my first morning back from Israel.”
Despite the ordeal, he wrote in his post, “It’s going to be a great day in the Lord.”
Locke said, “It was strange because he (the suspect) had his blinders on and was breaking the wheels and things like that.
‘He was very meticulous, so he had to be very brave to do what he did. We’ve had people do things to our building, we’ve been vandalized a number of times, which is why we need security, but we’ve never had 200 Bibles burned.”
“A trailer containing approximately 200 Bibles had been set on fire and was blocking the entrance to Old Lebanon Dirt Rd. and Chandler Radford Rd. to the main part of our parking lot,” Pastor Locke said
He added, “That’s a pretty rebellious statement toward the church.”
Locke also told the worshipers of his church to continue with the ordeal.
“What people often think will hold us back actually only encourages us, in a strange way, to know that we are doing what is right,” Locke said.
Some commenters expressed gratitude to the police and firefighters who responded to the scene, while others thanked Reverend Locke for his service. While others recited psalms from the Bible.
‘So bad! They will face the Lord on the day of judgment! God bless your Church today. He is risen!’, one person wrote.
“The Devil is working overtime,” said another.
“Thank you Lord for the police cars on scene,” someone joked. ‘Help that pathetic, dirty man of Satan who is burning Bibles at the crossroads. May he know You in a way he never saw coming.”
‘Proclaiming Psalm 91 and God’s Shalom over you and the family of faith. May God turn what was meant for evil into good, for the sake of His glory and namesake,” some posted.
Another prayed about what happened.
“Father God, send Your warrior angels to surround and encamp this family church and city! Lord, we beg the blood of Jesus Christ, our Savior, over all who are devoted to the Lord and come and go from our Church!
“For Your glory we praise and worship ONLY HOLY HOLY HOLY HOLY is Your Name on High AMEN Hallelujah Thank You Father, we know we are Your children. We love you, King Jesus,” they wrote.
Despite the uproar the incident caused, there were some who expressed sympathy for the person responsible.
‘Pray for the man who did this! Apparently he needs it!!’ Someone said.
Another person felt the same way: “All I have to say is, may God bless the person who did this. Pastor Locke just keeps doing the Lord’s work.”
“Let’s come together and pray for the person who did this, that he or she will have a ‘Paul’ moment, repent and come fully to Christ,” said another.
The Wilson County Sheriff’s Office is handling the investigation and the suspicious fire. No arrests have been made.
While they were limited in what they could share, they told residents that their “safety and security remains their top priority.”
They were unavailable when DailyMail.com contacted to find out if there was a suspect in the case.
Anyone with information or additional surveillance footage of the incident is asked to contact the Wilson County Sheriff’s Office at 615-444-1459.