{"id":2420333,"date":"2025-04-05T16:33:02","date_gmt":"2025-04-05T20:33:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/priest-shot-at-his-own-rectory-witnesses-identify-older-man-as-shooter\/"},"modified":"2025-04-05T16:34:04","modified_gmt":"2025-04-05T20:34:04","slug":"priest-shot-at-his-own-rectory-witnesses-identify-older-man-as-shooter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/priest-shot-at-his-own-rectory-witnesses-identify-older-man-as-shooter\/","title":{"rendered":"Priest Shot at His Own Rectory, Witnesses Identify Older Man as Shooter"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fpriest-shot-at-his-own-rectory-witnesses-identify-older-man-as-shooter%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2420333&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>On Thursday, a Roman Catholic priest named Father Arul Carasala, aged 57, was shot and killed outside the rectory of Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Seneca, Kansas. Police arrested 66-year-old Gary L.Hermesch, who faces potential first<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/minneapolis-reconsiders-drops-program-to-pay-social-media-influencers-during-chauvin-trial\/\" title=\"Minneapolis Reconsiders, Drops Program To Pay Social Media Influencers During Chauvin Trial\">-degree murder charges<\/a>. The incident occurred around 2:50 PM when authorities responded to reports of gunshots. Despite being transported to Nemaha Valley Community Hospital, Carasala succumbed to his injuries. The motive for the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/3-students-killed-8-injured-in-mich-high-school-shooting-authorities-confirm-15-year-old-suspect-in-custody\/\" title=\"3 students killed, 8 injured in Mich. high school shooting authorities confirm 15-year-old suspect in custody\">shooting remains unclear<\/a>, but it has left the community and church members grieving. archbishop Joseph F. Naumann expressed sorrow over the senseless violence, calling Carasala a beloved leader and urging prayers for both him and the perpetrator. Hermesch was taken into custody shortly after the shooting, and charges against him have as been formalized.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Police arrested a suspect after a Roman Catholic priest was shot and killed in Seneca, Kansas, on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>The suspect was Gary L. Hermesch, 66, who police arrested and jailed on possible first-degree murder, according to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kansas.gov\/kbi\/news\/docs\/KBI%20NEWS%20%20Man%20arrested%20connected%20to%20Seneca%20homicide.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news release<\/a> from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.<\/p>\n<p>The priest in question was 57-year-old Father Arul Carasala.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I am heartbroken to  the tragic news of the death of Fr. Arul Carasala, who was fatally shot earlier today,&rdquo; Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann wrote in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/archkck\/posts\/pfbid0Hv8vJG7L27a9ZobKfqeoskFwoSAb5opw9r6j27fJ5DYAR3k4Uauj5UBv2SvAxFSYl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">post<\/a>. &ldquo;This senseless act of violence has left us grieving the loss of a beloved priest, leader, and friend.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>At around 2:50 p.m. that afternoon, police responded to a complaint about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/despite-manifesto-full-hate-nashville-pds-final-report-covenant-shooting-comes-conclusion\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">gunshots<\/a> at the Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church rectory, where Carasala lived.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>Upon arrival, the Seneca Police Department discovered Carasala wounded with gunshots.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">NEW: A Catholic priest in Kansas was shot and killed outside his church yesterday.<\/p>\n<p>Father Arul Carasala was approached by Gary Lee Hermesch outside the rectory of Sts. Peter &amp; Paul Catholic Church in Seneca &mdash; about two hours northwest of Kansas City &mdash; and shot three times. He&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/mdtCW7WMiZ\">pic.twitter.com\/mdtCW7WMiZ<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; CatholicVote (@CatholicVote) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CatholicVote\/status\/1908073438079586385?\">April 4, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Seneca EMS took Carasala to the Nemaha Valley Community Hospital, where he died from his injuries.<\/p>\n<p>Hermesch, of Tulsa, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/dozens-horses-fall-dead-oklahoma-rodeo-investigation-underway\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Oklahoma<\/a>, was arrested shortly after.<\/p>\n<p>At first, KBI said Hermesch had not yet been formally charged, but officials on Friday announced that he was, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/priest-shot-killed-seneca-kansas-f418a0f3933baaef73b359e32abd8363\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Associated Press<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Authorities have not yet released a motive for the shooting.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;From what we know, an <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">older man walked<\/a> up to him and shot him three times,&rdquo; Kris Anderson, the director of religious education at the parish, told the outlet.<\/p>\n<p>Carasala became pastor at the parish in 2011, just after becoming an American citizen, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.saintspeterandpaul-seneca.com\/meet-our-pastor\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">church website<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>He was ordained a priest in 1994 for the Diocese of Cuddapah, which is in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-effect-india-agrees-take-back-every-one-citizens-illegally-living-u-s\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">India<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;In this time of sorrow, let us entrust Fr. Carasala to the mercy of God and lift up in prayer his family in Cuddapah, India, his parish community at Saints Peter and Paul in Seneca, and all who mourn his passing. Let us also pray for the perpetrator, that God may touch and transform his heart,&rdquo; Naumann wrote in his post.<\/p>\n<p>The night of Carasala&rsquo;s death, the congregation prayed a rosary for him, which was followed by a mass at the parish, according to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/archkck\/posts\/pfbid0Hv8vJG7L27a9ZobKfqeoskFwoSAb5opw9r6j27fJ5DYAR3k4Uauj5UBv2SvAxFSYl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">post<\/a> from the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Let us entrust Fr. Arul to God&rsquo;s mercy and lift up in prayer his family, parishioners, friends, and brother priests. May we also pray for the conversion of heart for the perpetrator. Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him,&rdquo; the archdiocese statement read.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Police apprehended a suspect following the shooting death of a Roman Catholic priest in Seneca, Kansas, on Thursday. The suspect, 66-year-old Gary L. Hermesch, was taken into custody and is facing potential first-degree murder charges, as stated in a news release from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. The victim was Father Arul Carasala, who was 57 years old. Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann expressed his sorrow over the loss of Father Carasala in a post: \u201cThis senseless act of violence has left us grieving for a beloved priest, leader, and friend.\u201d Authorities responded to reports of gunfire at the rectory of Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church around 2:50 p.m., where they found Carasala injured from gunshots.<\/p>\n<p>Emergency services transported him to Nemaha Valley Community Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries. Hermesch was arrested shortly after the incident; initially uncharged according to KBI reports but later confirmed by officials on Friday as being charged with murder. A motive for the shooting has not yet been disclosed. Kris Anderson, director of religious education at the parish, mentioned that an older man approached Carasala and shot him three times.<\/p>\n<p>Carasala had been serving as pastor since 2011 after becoming an American citizen; he was ordained in 1994 for India\u2019s Diocese of Cuddapah. In light of this tragedy, Archbishop Naumann called for prayers for Father Carasala&#8217;s family in India and his parish community during this difficult time while also urging prayers for Hermesch&#8217;s transformation.<\/p>\n<p>On the night following Carasala\u2019s death, members of his congregation held a rosary service followed by mass at their parish as part of their mourning process<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2420334,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Carasala.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[10635,52924,4300,4209],"class_list":["post-2420333","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-priest","tag-rectory","tag-shooting","tag-witnesses"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Carasala.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2420333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2420333"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2420333\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2420338,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2420333\/revisions\/2420338"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2420334"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2420333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2420333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2420333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}