He was wearing a priest's stole, found in the confessional where he had sat to listen to and absolve penitents. A 44-year-old man, a social-health worker by profession, passed himself off as a priest. A long line of pilgrims quickly formed for him, arriving at the Shrine of Pompeii for the Jubilee journey that includes confession - precisely - Communion and works of Christian charity with which to receive the grace of plenary indulgence of sins.
It was one of the faithful who suspected that something was wrong, while other pilgrims were waiting their turn to approach the confessional. The custodian of the sacred area of the Sanctuary, dedicated to the Virgin of the Holy Rosary of Pompeii, went in turn to notify the carabinieri of the permanent position in the Marian Basilica and the military intervened to stop the impostor, a 44-year-old from Terzigno, a Vesuvian municipality a few kilometers from Pompeii, a hospital employee as Oss.
Discreetly approached by the military and taken away from the Sanctuary Penitentiary, the man said he had acted in good faith, in the belief that he could relieve the faithful from the burden of their sins by absolving them after confession. He was reported for impersonation and disruption of religious functions.
"This is the first time something like this has happened," commented Don Andrea Fontanella, head of the Penitentiary of the Shrine of Pompeii. He reassures: "I want to urge the faithful to stay calm and serene. We receive requests for reservations from thousands of pilgrims, increasing every day, numbers increased by the Jubilee and the announced canonization of Blessed Bartolo Longo. It was an isolated episode, which will now make us more vigilant in all areas of the sanctuary. We invite the faithful to come with confidence to the meeting with the Father, prepared to receive the grace of Reconciliation and the embrace of the Lord."
(Online Union)
