A former Catholic school teacher was tackled and detained after interrupting a Kansas church service to pray for undocumented immigrants.

Jimbo Gillcrist, who previously taught ethics, approached the pulpit at Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Overland Park just before 11 am mass on March 23rd.

According to Mail Online he intended to recite a reworded version of the Lord’s Prayer, speaking out against Donald Trump’s mass deportation policies.

“I thought the worst that could happen is maybe they’d try to shut me down and ask me to leave,” Gillcrist told The Kansas City Star. “I in no way thought I’d be tackled in a church.”

Four parishioners, including a deacon, dragged him from the sanctuary.

Church audio captured someone asking if anyone was armed, and two replied that their weapons were in their cars.

Police arrived and handcuffed Gillcrist after one parishioner accused him of pushing the priest, an allegation he reportedly denied.

“I grabbed the pulpit and just held on. I didn’t push anyone,” he told officers.

Gillcrist said he intended to highlight the suffering of migrants and war victims, stating, “I’m worried about human beings… our brothers and sisters.”

He shared part of his intended prayer online, saying God’s kingdom “is not one of borders and fixed realms and flags and exclusion.”

Police ultimately released him without charge but warned he could be cited for trespassing if he returns.

Gillcrist was previously arrested at a Black Lives Matter protest and dismissed from Rockhurst High School in 2023 after urging students to oppose deportations, violating the school’s no-politics policy.