An Italian priest has apologised after holding mass in the sea with a lilo acting as a makeshift altar.
Mattia Bernasconi, from Milan, originally intended to hold the novelty mass among the trees by the beach in Crotone, but said the spot was taken.
Resorting instead to a floating altar, Bernasconi held the ceremony for a youth camp that was reaching its end.
Despite some viewing the mass as a bit of fun, the sea-soaked holy man eventually apologised if any offence was caused, but defended his actions.
Bernasconi: "It was absolutely not my intention to trivialise the eucharist...it was simply the mass at the end of a week of work."
"But the symbols are strong, it's true, and they speak, sometimes in a different way than we would like.
"It was naïve of me not to give them due weight."
According to local media, a local prosecutor is reported to have opened a file on the incident for offending religious service.
The Archdiocese of Crotone said they were pleased what the commitment of the young people that attended, but the service should not have taken place in the sea.
They said: "It is necessary to maintain that minimum of decorum and attention to the symbols required by the very nature of liturgical celebrations,"
Altar cloths are supposed to be well-made and serve the purpose of presenting as "a white, cloth of fine linen that covers the top of the altar and hangs down at/over each side," according to Our Lady of Perpetual health and their handy guide to cleaning liturgical linens.
They are supposed to be "out of reverence for the celebration of the memorial of the Lord and the banquet that gives us his body," but the thrifty priest used a beach mat instead.
Not everyone was annoyed by the idea, with one bystander saying on TikTok they thought it was understandable in the hot sun.
They said: "When it is hot, it is hot for all. Alternative masses due to the 40 [degrees] today in Crotone."
It is not the first time a Catholic Church official priest has earned themselves a ticking off by the church.
In December 2021, for instance, the Roman Catholic diocese in Sicily apologised to parents when Bishop Antonio Stagliano told a group of children Santa Claus was not real.
Not satisfied with squashing a childhood fantasy, the bishop also introduced the children to the world of company advertising by explaining that Father Christmas wears red thanks to Coca-Cola's Christmas advertising.
