Vatican newspaper describes comedian's criticism as 'terrorism'

Published: 2007-05-03

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano described as "terrorism" an Italian comedian's criticism of Catholic Church teaching. "It is terrorism to launch attacks against the church," the newspaper said in a back-page article May 2, the day after one of the performers at Rome's annual May Day concert criticized the church in comments broadcast on state-run television. "It is vile and terroristic to throw stones against the pope," the newspaper said. The comic, Andrea Rivera, criticized Pope Benedict XVI's position on the theory of evolution and a decision by the Diocese of Rome not to allow a Catholic funeral for a man with muscular dystrophy who publicly campaigned for assisted suicide.

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