Authorities in Louisiana say that a white male in his early teens is responsible for burning down a predominantly black church in Louisiana's Richland Parish, the News-Star of Monroe reports.

Witnesses saw the teen at St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church near a white Entergy Corp truck, and noticed smoke rising from the house of worship right after the truck drove away. They called the authorities, but by the time police and fire teams arrived, the church had been swallowed by the flames.

A cornerstone of the local black community, the church had a 100 year old building and a newer, modern sanctuary on its property. The fire affected only the newer building.

"I couldn't believe it," parishioner Mary Alexander told NBC 10 KTVE/FOX 14 KARD. "Because we was just here last night for a church meeting and you never expect things like this would happen this close by."

Police went to Entergy to try to track down the truck, which turned out to be stolen; the company helped officials find the stolen vehicle.

Not only did police find the truck, but they found the teen with it. 

Alexander, proving herself to be a model of Christian charity, didn't have harsh words for the teen.

"We don't know why only God know's why … what's going through that person's mind so we just ask for prayers for that person as well as our church family," she said. 

And though many of the church's relics were lost in the fire, Alexander said that losing things doesn't really matter, saying, "God is in our heart; the church is in us, not the building."

And she was grateful that the fire hadn't destroyed everything. "Like I said we still have the old building. We're still gonna move forward."

The police also plan to move forward, announcing that the teen will face an arson charge for burning down the church.