A priest in Tennessee has banned a black housekeeper from cleaning his church and home, having blamed it on his dog - who he claims is racist.
LaShundra Allen is calling out Father Jacek Kowal following an incident that happened on 3 May at the Catholic Church of the Incarnation in Collierville, Memphis.
She had been introduced to church staff by the woman she was due to replace, but things then took a surreal twist.
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"I was just supposed to clean the church and I was supposed to go to the pastor's house and clean as well," Allen told FOX13.
"They were just like, 'Well, I'm not really sure how to say this', kind of like in a joking way, 'but Father Jacek doesn't want black people cleaning the house because his dog is racist'."
That's right, he said it wasn't him that was racist, but his German Shepherd.
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While Kowal refused to appear on camera, he provided a statement to FOX13 - in which he 'wholeheartedly' discounted the allegations of racism.
He told the news outlet that his German Shepherd 'had a bad experience with a stranger who happened to be African American' when it was younger, and has apparently been aggressive to strangers ever since.
He claimed this was particularly the case with African American people.
"As a disciple of Jesus Christ, I wholeheartedly believe all forms of discrimination based upon race or ethnicity are sinful and wrong," he said in his statement.
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"As a pastor, I have ministered to, employed and worked with numerous African Americans. Their claim that I didn't want an African American to clean my rectory is simply not true."
The women at the church apparently offered to put the dog in a crate while they cleaned, but were told that they couldn't.
"I didn't even know what to say," Allen said.
"They were acting like I was just supposed to be ok with it. Joking around with it, and I'm just like, 'That's not ok. You just told me you didn't want me in your house because I'm coloured skinned'."
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She added: "You're supposed to be godly. God doesn't see colour."
The Catholic Diocese of Memphis opened an investigation into the incident, but said claims of racial bias and discrimination are 'unfounded'.
"Although the parish staff member's choice of words was highly unfortunate and imprecise - they were not motivated by racial animus," Bishop David Talley said in a statement.
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"Rather, the concern by all involved was the safety of these women, one of whom was a stranger to the dog, and they knew that attempting to crate the dog would be dangerous when its owner was not present."
Talley's statement said the staff at the church knew that Kowal's dog was 'somewhat more agitated initially around strangers with darker skin, until the dog gets to know them'.
"While the current housekeeper had been properly introduced to the dog by Fr. Kowal, he was not able to leave at that time to introduce his dog to the replacement employee," he added.
"Fr. Kowal's response would have been the same with respect to any new employee or visitor unknown by the dog, regardless of race or ethnicity."
Allen's attorney, Maureen Holland, told FOX13 they're exploring their legal options, should she be forced to take the matter to court.
Featured Image Credit: Twitter/@ccincarnation