JOHNSON COUNTY, Kan. -- Thieves forced their way into three Johnson County churches, and investigators were trying to figure out if the incidents were linked.

The thieves stole cash from two of the churches -- in Westwood, Kan. -- and cash and credit cards from the third church -- in Prairie Village, Kan.

The crimes were discovered during the past two weekends.

Bettie Swiontek, of the Westwood Lutheran Church, said the thieves broke a stained glass window and "trashed" an office.

"They pulled the communion vessels and all the communion material out of a cabinet and threw it all over the floor, broke a lot of the little communion glasses," Swiontek said. "It seemed almost anti-religious to us, the way it looked, the sort of things that they did seemed to say they were angry."

If she could address the thieves, Swiontek said she'd say, "God loves you no matter what you've done, and we forgive you, but we don't want you to do this to us again or any other church again."

Authorities were investigating.

They urged anyone with any information to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS.