Posted on 04/08/2020 5:35:29 PM PDT by marshmallow
Civil rights leader asks why Pope Francis is not subject to same law
ROME (ChurchMilitant.com) - A priest who was fined €400 ($432) for processing with a "miraculous crucifix" through the picture-postcard town of Rocca Imperiale in southern Italy is refusing to pay the penalty in protest against the state's repressive measures to "punish the Church."
Father Domenico Cirigliano, 76, says he was doing what every parish priest overseeing Rocca Imperiale in the province of Calabria has done for the last 300 years: re-enacting the procession that has been the town's tradition since March 30, 1691 — the date on which the crucifix is said to have bled before the people of the town.
The priest insists he was not violating the health restrictions as he was walking on his own with the crucifix and with a protective mask. A single parishioner was following at the legally stipulated distance.
But last Monday, on the town's holy day commemorating the feast of the miraculous crucifix, the parish priest of the Church of the Most Holy Annunciation was arrested by the Italian paramilitary police and slapped with a penalty of €400, which could be reduced to €280 ($302) if paid within five days.
"I will not pay it, simple. I didn't even sign the [police] report," Fr. Cirigliano told Italian newspaper La Nuova Bussola Quotidiana.
The priest said that he immediately reported the matter to Bp. Francesco Savino.
Savino, appointed bishop of Cassano all'Jonio in 2015 by Pope Francis, phoned Mayor Giuseppe Ranù. The mayor promptly placed the priest under a 14-day "house arrest."
Cirigliano affirmed that he was not prepared to sacrifice the procession his people "have been conducting for more than three centuries without skipping a year." A few days before the event, he informed his parishioners that he "would.......
(Excerpt) Read more at churchmilitant.com ...
Processing? A procession?
Weird, isn’t it?
Processing meth?
From the picture, he is leading a procession. Bad translation, I guess.
Good for him. Go to jail and sing praises . God will break the chains
GOOD FOR HIM!!!
Tradition means something, fascists.
It’s the Cross that must protect us!
A procession of two?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.