Parishioners leaving the Christmas liturgy at the Sts Volodymyr and Olga Cathedral on Friday came face-to-face with a police officers involved in an incident on McGregor Street.
Officers could be seen surrounding a home and arresting a suspect, just as the church service was letting out.
Nicholas Chubenko, chair of the Sts Vladimir and Olga Cathedral, said parishioners started to leave the cathedral, but had to turn around and go back in.
"It's quite disturbing. It's poor timing on the part of this community area, but we've been finding that this area has always been a problem," he said. "It's just another example of how unstable this area is."
The church has been wrestling with the idea of how to protect parishioners, including considering finding a new place to worship.
"We've had a lot of vandalism, we've had graffiti, we've had cars stolen from the parish church parking lot from time to time," Chubenko said.
There are also worries about the safety of seniors in a facility near the church, he said.
Police said the tactical team was executing a search warrant for man who was wanted on outstanding charges. They took him into custody.
Const. Natalie Aitken said officers were not aware that there was a church service going on at the time and it's not something they would have taken into consideration.
Aitken said that while having to stay inside the church may have been frustrating for the parishioners, the tactical team was ensuring everyone's safety in the area by making the arrest.
