Sunday service brings together parishioners after the burning of three historic black churches

OPELOUSAS, La. – Tears in Pastor Gerald Toussaint's eyes as he watched what was left of his 145-year-old church Sunday. "It's unfortunate that our society has bowed so much to do something like this," said Toussaint, 56, pastor of the Mount Pleasant Baptist Church in Opelousas, Louisiana.

Mount Pleasant is the third African American church to be destroyed in the parish of St. Landry in the space of 10 days.

On March 26, the St. Mary's Church was reported as the first reported church fire. Then, just 10 miles (4.8 km), the Baptist Church of the Great Union ignited a week later. The three churches were well over a hundred years old.

A fourth church was burned about 200 km from Caddo Parish, Louisiana. The authorities do not believe that the fire is connected to the three in the parish of St. Landry, but continue to investigate.

The Louisiana Fire Marshal, the senior fire investigator, is working with ATF and the FBI to examine what remains to be determined to determine the cause and possible motive. Meanwhile, more than 100 criminal investigators are on the scene while 150 to 200 investigators are working across the country to determine the cause.

"At the present time, we must say that fires are suspicious," said Louisiana State Fire Marshal Butch Browning. "We believe that crimes have been committed. We think that the three fires are obviously not a coincidence, they are related. "

In the era of civil rights, the black church fire was used as a tactic of intimidation – towards individuals and communities collectively.

"We know the past and history, which certainly drives our investigation. I think our survey generates more passion for quick answers, "said Browning. says, "We are chasing them now and we are going to find them. We will bring them to justice.

For Toussaint, services must continue as planned. Her congregation was invited to attend the Morning Star Baptist Church, where a crowded house seemed to want to hear the word of God this Sunday morning.

"Tell them we will continue to pray with a building or without a building," said Morning Star deacon Curtis Zachary, 46. "You can burn a building, but you can not take us or break us."

A few miles from Morning Star Baptist, St. Mary's Church, another historically African-American church built in 1901, rests in ashes. Bibles are burned but not destroyed.

"I think it's a sign," said Shameka Mallet, who has been a parish priest in St. Mary's all her life. His family has been part of the church for generations.

"It's a bit devastating. My mother was buried here, my grandfather was buried here and my aunts got married here, "Mallet said. She thinks the fire of these historically black churches has something to do with race. "This church has been here for a very long time and then suddenly this church is burned down? It's terrible. "

Even in the worst situations, however, Toussaint remains optimistic.

"That led us to call ourselves more than we ever called," he said. "Now we can shoot together."