NORTH SEARSPORT – Vandals have made a target of the Prevailing Winds Pentecostal Church and though pastor Clarence Merchant won’t go so far as to say it’s the work of the devil, he wonders what would prompt someone to rob and wreck a house of worship so close to Christmas.

“We can’t imagine who would do this,” a saddened Merchant said Wednesday.

“All we know is, as it looks right now, we will not have a Christmas. We have nothing left. There is no money in the treasury.”

While the church has been vandalized in the past, the theft and destruction inflicted over the past few days have been devastating.

The damage was so extensive the church cannot be used for services.

Both furnaces were damaged. An exterior tank of fuel oil was emptied, which caused the church’s plumbing to burst. Christmas decorations were stolen, along with coins collected by church youth for purchase of a van.

Proceeds from the last offering were also taken. The coins were in plain sight in a plastic jug but the offering was well hidden.

“They had to paw through a lot of things to find that,” Merchant said. He estimated the cash loss at more than $400.

In addition, the church’s new $3,000 lighted sign was smashed to pieces.

New windows being stored until their planned installation next spring had their glass broken and sash stomped.

If that wasn’t enough, a used freezer donated to the church by a Bangor donut shop was stolen hours before church members went to Bangor to pick it up last Saturday. Workers at the donut shop observed the freezer being hauled away and assumed it was the parishioners, said Merchant.

“We were going to use it for our food bank,” he said.

Searsport police Officer Steve Hegstrom said the department had some “solid leads” and was actively pursuing suspects. He said the case appeared to be a hate crime specifically directed toward the church.

“Whoever did this really wanted to trash that church,” Hegstrom said Wednesday.

Pastor Merchant said the church is in its second year and has 30 adult members and 15 youth.

Services are held in an old grange hall and members had been making steady progress at repairing the building when the vandals struck.

He said the church’s insurance had lapsed, though members had planned to renew the policy on Friday. Pastor Merchant said because the church is unaffiliated, there is no governing body to turn to for assistance.

“It leaves the church with absolutely no money. We have no idea what we’re going to do now,” said Merchant.

“There is no way we can come up with the money. We have no choice other than to hope and pray that help will come from somewhere.”

Pastor Merchant can be reached at 862-4287.