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Christ Lutheran Church and First Congregational Church of Natick posted on Facebook about the incidents that happened late Saturday night or early Sunday morning, July 27-28.
First Congregational Rev. Cindy Worthington-Berry posted that the church's pride, transgender, and mental health flags were all removed and thrown under some nearby bushes.
The pride flags were put back after Natick police cleared the scene. Worthington-Berry said services went as planned on Sunday.
"Our congregation gathered for worship and proclaimed, as we always do, 'No matter who you are, or where you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here.'" she wrote. "Especially those who have been told by other churches that they are broken, sinful, or wrong for who they love — or who they are."
Worthington-Berry included a photo of the flags back in their original place with her post.
The scene at Christ Lutheran was the same with the flags taken down and replaced with a "Jesus is King" banner and anti-gay letters that included scriptures left on the ground.
Rev. Christephor Gilbert said in a Facebook post that it was painful to see the Bible used to condone hate.
We are saddened by what has happened and hope that — should the people who did this become known — the community of Natick will act in love and restorative justice to ensure that this does not happen again in our town.
Gilbert added that while he's thankful for the support, people should not overlook the needs of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community, which is also suffering from the incident.
Calls to Natick police were not immediately returned.
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