GETZVILLE, N.Y. -- Pastor Jerry Gillis of The Chapel at Crosspoint said despite the vandalism at the church Saturday, that the church would carry on its mission as normal and today they did just that. More than a thousand people attended services Sunday morning to hear what their pastor had to say.
Early Saturday morning Amherst police and the Getzville Fire Company were called out to the church to investigate a fire. When they arrived, they discovered a Molotov Cocktail, a homemade incendiary device, had been thrown through the door of th east entrance to the Chapel. Luckily the Church's sprinkler system contained the fire to the vestibule. Considering what could have happened, damage was minor. Fire investigators say there was about $10,000 in damage, mostly due to water and to the sprinkler system.
In his sermon this morning, Pastor Jerry called the vandalism an act against the building - not the church - and he called on the congregation to pray for the vandals.
"There was alittle damge to the building, but there was no damage to the church. By that what we mean is simply, the church is people. Buildings are buildings. this structure is not the church. We are the Church," said Gillis.
Meantime, the Amherst arson team is being assisted by the ATF in their investigation of this vandalism and fire. Amherst police officials also said they're not ruling out the possibility that this may have been a hate crime because it happened at a house of worship.