The Mysterious Roach-Thrower Of Macon, Georgia

Joe Kovac Jr.: When cockroaches by the dozen started showing up at the front doors of the Fountain Temple AME Church on Sunday mornings, folks in the 35-member congregation weren't sure what to think.

Their Pleasant Hill church dates to the middle 1800s. A decade ago it was condemned, its steeple caving in. But it was saved. They fixed the roof, put in new windows, purple carpet, purple-upholstered pews, a purple cross in the choir loft and brass chandeliers. The place was spotless, and they kept it that way.

Then last month, roaches — some skittering, some spiritless — began appearing around the welcome mat outside the sanctuary foyer. The bugs were also in the pink-bowed wreaths on the…