The Deacon's Bench
In apparent defiance of Pope Francis, a church procession detoured from its route through a southern Italian town to honor a convicted mobster under house arrest.
Interior Minister Angelino Alfano on Sunday denounced the tribute in Oppido Mamertina, a Calabrian town and ‘ndrangheta crime syndicate stronghold, as “deplorable and disgusting.” He praised three Carabinieri policemen who abandoned the procession in disapproval.
On June 21, Francis, visiting Calabria, had denounced the ‘ndrangheta for its “adoration of evil” and said its members were excommunicated.
The July 2 procession included clergy, the mayor, parents pushing baby strollers and dozens of local men carrying on their shoulders an ornate Madonna statue.
Carabinieri officer Andrea Marino said he and his fellow officer walked away from the procession after the detour and headed to the church to complain about what happened.
One of Calabria’s anti-Mafia prosecutors, Nicola Gratteri, told The Associated Press that the detour to the mobster’s house appeared to be a “challenge to the diktat” of Francis.
‘Ndrangheta, a global cocaine trafficker, is one of the world’s most powerful crime syndicates. Religious rituals hold an important place in the mobsters’ mentality.
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