A Crucifix Fell on a Priest During Mass in Ecuador. Don't Watch the Video. Pray for His Parish.

A Catholic priest in Ecuador died Saturday night when a heavy crucifix fell from the wall behind him as he celebrated Mass. The service was being livestreamed.

The facts come first below. My reflection follows in the section marked as opinion.

What happened

The Archdiocese of Guayaquil identified the priest as the Rev. Patricio Alfredo Sánchez Molinari, the parish priest at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in the coastal city of Guayaquil, NBC News reported.

Video of the service shows a large crucifix detaching from the wall above the altar and striking him on the head, The Associated Press reported. He was behind the altar, facing the congregation, and did not see it falling, according to NBC. He did not get up. Worshippers cried out and rushed to help him.

"Father, Father! Call an ambulance!" people could be heard shouting before the broadcast cut out, according to AFP. The Ecuadorian newspaper El Universo reported that the cross fell during a prayer.

NBC reported that the livestream video was taken down. AFP reported that the footage spread widely on social media Sunday. Local authorities had not commented, the AP said, and no official cause for the cross coming loose has been announced.

Sánchez belonged to the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, the Redemptorists, a Catholic order founded in 1732 that works in 80 countries, according to the AP.

His church says goodbye

In a statement, the archdiocese said Sánchez "has left to the House of the Father to enjoy his presence and glory," NBC reported. El Universo said the statement was signed by Cardinal Luis Cabrera Herrera, the archbishop of Guayaquil, and offered condolences to the Redemptorist community and to the priest's family and friends. A Mass in his memory was scheduled for Sunday evening, according to NBC.

A parish in the town of Vinces, where he served for several years as pastor, also mourned him. "With our hope placed in the love and mercy of God, we share the news of the death of Father Patricio Sánchez Molinari, who served our community for several years as pastor with dedication and pastoral love," the parish posted, as quoted by El Universo. That translation from Spanish is mine.

It has been a hard month for congregations in Latin America. Last week Dock Line reported that a Calvary Chapel pastor and his wife were shot outside their home in Mexico after he led a funeral.

Opinion: Do not watch it. Pray instead.

Some stories travel fast because they are shocking. This is one of them. A man died in front of his flock, at the altar, under the very symbol of the faith he preached. People will be tempted to watch the video, share it and read meanings into it.

Christians should resist all three. This was a man with a family, a religious community and a parish in shock. He deserves the dignity of not being turned into a viral clip. If you come across the footage, scroll past it and say a prayer for his people.

We should also resist making it into a sign. Scripture does not invite that. Jesus spoke of 18 people killed when the tower in Siloam fell on them and asked, "think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, Nay" (Luke 13:4-5). Accidents happen in a fallen world, even in church. What Jesus drew from that tragedy was a call for each of us to be ready.

That is the lesson here. "For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away" (James 4:14). Father Sánchez did not know Saturday night's Mass would be his last. None of us knows which day will be ours.

There is comfort, too. He died doing the work he gave his life to, leading his people in worship. "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints" (Psalm 116:15). Pray for his parish, for the Redemptorists and for everyone who was in that church Saturday night.