Pribek

You got to hand it to the Italians. From Reuters.

Catholic nuns and priests in Italy are following their flocks to the beach this summer, establishing an inflatable church and a beach-convent in the sands to lure sunbathers.

The 30-metre (98 ft) long blow-up church — staffed by priests ready to take confession — will debut on Saturday on the Adriatic coast in the Molise region, an organizer said.

“There will be four or five people singing, with music about God,” said Chiara Facci with Catholic group Sentinelli del Mattino. Night time activities, which will not include Mass, will run from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m.

See to me, this is practical and fun. You can’t just go build a church on a public beach, it has to be a temporary structure. Close proximity to folks who will have plenty to confess; lots of impure thoughts at the old beach. And, what beachcomber can resist polyurethane inflatables? You got, the beach ball, the air mattress, the giant inner tube and now the blow-up basilica. It just makes good sense.

The first attempt to inaugurate the inflatable church last month on the holiday island of Sardinia failed after strong winds forced organizers to relocate

Acts of God, no problem. Go get ‘em next week.

“The concept of a beach-convent is something that is appreciated by vacationers and the nuns themselves,” priest Antonio Rungi, who helped spearheaded the initiative

Never thought about that, did you? Everybody else gets to hang at the beach, why shouldn’t a nun get to have a little fun in the sun?

From Reuters.

An Italian couple who were caught having sex in a church confessional box while morning Mass was being said have repented and made peace with the local bishop.

Repent sinners! But, get your nut first. That’s the lesson there, right?
What were they doing in the confessional box? Surely, there’s someplace else to bump uglies that makes more logical sense than a confessional box during morning Mass. What were these two thinking?

The couple, in their early 30s, were detained by police earlier this month after they had made love in the confessional box in the cathedral in northern Cesena. They were cautioned for obscene acts in public and disturbing a religious function.

Their lawyer said they had been drinking all night and realized they had gone too far.

Well, that explains it, they were drinking. I’m sure that there is no one among us that hasn’t had a few too many, got a little lippy, pissed as a potter, a little Chinese eyed from time to time and thought; “You know, this would be a good time to make the beast with two backs in the confessional while Mass is going on. Wouldn’t that be a scream?” Who hasn’t done that?

But, it often turns into a logistical problem. First, you have to have a willing partner who is at roughly the same level of drunkenness. That’s tricky, especially on an all night binge. Usually, one drinker gets way ahead of the other. You have be close to a Catholic Church and both be wearing outfits that will allow you to get funky in the close confines of the confessional box. That’s like having all the planets in alignment. Pretty rare. So, who can blame these yobs for realizing that the opportunity was their’s for the taking?

The lawyer told the area’s local newspaper on Wednesday the couple met with the local bishop on Tuesday night, asked for his forgiveness and that he had given it.

Last week the bishop celebrated a “Mass of reparation” in the cathedral where the confessional box incident took place to make up for the sacrilege.

All is well that ends well, I guess. I’ll tell you this much, it’s going to be a tough one to top for this couple. Having a “Mass of reparation” in your honor to make up for your “sacrilege”, that’s way above and beyond having the stewardess knocking on the bathroom door because a line has formed and then having to exit together with everyone looking at you, casting knowing glances, salacious grins, some scowling in disgust. No, this couple can’t settle for something that easy anymore.

An audience with the Pope, perhaps?