Italian priest arrested and fined for carrying a crucifix in the street
In Italy, a priest was arrested and fined for carrying a crucifix through the streets of his town. Father Domenico Cirigliano, parish priest of Rocca Imperiale, a town of some 3,330 inhabitants in Calabria, was placed under house arrest for fourteen days although he had kept the stipulated distance between himself and other people during the procession.
Father Cirigliano was also ordered to pay a fine of four hundred euros, which he refuses to do. According to the Italian Catholic blog La Nuova Bussola Quotidiana, the procession included only the priest and an assistant, who remained at a safe distance behind him.
Nuova Bussola Quotidiana wrote that besides the “absurd” aspect of the punishment, it was the “natural continuation” of the arbitrary restrictions imposed by the Italian state that hampered freedom of religion in the country.”
In an interview with the newspaper, Father Cirigliano explained that the crucifix is carried in the procession every year around the town.
“It was precisely in 1691 that this crucifix shed blood. It is to recall this miracle that it is taken outside of the church for a procession in the town’s streets on the 30th of March of every year,” he explained.
Source: christianophobie.fr
Image: cqv.qc.ca
