Who is Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel? Priest at Wakeley’s Christ The Good Shepherd Church attacked in second Sydney stabbing is a known anti-vaxxer with huge online following
The priest stabbed during a sermon at a church in western Sydney is a known anti-vaxxer who railed against lockdowns during the Covid pandemic.
Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was delivering mass at Wakeley’s Christ The Good Shepherd Church on Monday night when he was attacked at about 7pm.
Horrifying footage of the incident, which was being broadcast live on the church’s YouTube page, shows Bishop Emmanuel look up in astonishment as the attacker dressed in black suddenly rains down blows on his face and head.
The attack comes just days after six people were stabbed to death in a separate rampage at Sydney’s Westfield Bondi Junction.
Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was delivering mass at Wakeley’s Christ The Good Shepherd Church on Monday night when he was attacked at about 7pm
Bishop Emmanuel rose to prominence during the Covid pandemic by criticising harsh lockdown measures which he branded ‘mass slavery’.
He claimed vaccines would not work against the virus because living ‘normally’ would boost immunity.
‘Are we humans? Because we are being treated like animals,’ Bishop Emmanuel said in a sermon in 2021.
‘They are encouraging people to go and take vaccine and stay at home. They have had enough.’
He has since developed a large TikTok following and has 290,000 followers on the church’s Facebook.
Horrifying footage of the incident, which was being broadcast live on the church’s YouTube page, shows Bishop Emmanuel look up in astonishment as the attacker dressed in black suddenly rains down blows on his face and hea
A spokesperson for NSW Police said Bishop Emmanuel suffered ‘non-life threatening injuries’.
‘Officers arrested a male and he is assisting police with inquiries,’ the spokesperson added.
Daily Mail Australia approached NSW Ambulance for comment.
