The local Catholic archbishop has urged for respect and decorum during liturgical celebrations after pictures of an Italian priest conducting Mass in the water while sitting on an inflatable lounge chair went viral this week.
In an interview on July 26, Father Mattia Bernasconi, a priest from the Milan archdiocese, publicly admitted that his decision to forego wearing vestments during a liturgy was “perhaps imprudent” and that he would not do it again.
The 36-year-old priest explained that he had been working with Libera, an anti-mafia organisation, on a week-long summer camp for high school students in southern Italy.
Bernasconi told the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, “We wanted to spend the last day at the beach; it was Sunday and there was the issue of Mass, which we always celebrate.
We chose to veer into the only place that was comfortable: in the water, he said. It was 10:30 in the morning and the sun was scorching.
Beachgoers in the southern Italian region of Calabria noticed the Mass off the coast of Crotone.
While some people attended the Mass, others uploaded pictures online.
The image of the priest in the water carrying a chalice above his head garnered an instant response online.
Social media users questioned why this liturgy was permitted since the Traditional Latin Mass has been subject to limitations.
According to a story from the Italian newspaper La Repubblica, Giuseppe Capoccia, the city of Crotone’s chief prosecutor, indicated that he thought it was legitimate to look into the priest for “offence to a religious confession.”
In a statement in response to the event, the Archdiocese of Crotone-Santa Severina stated on July 25 that it is “essential to maintain the minimal decorum and care for the symbols needed by the very nature of liturgical celebrations.”
Mass can also be celebrated outside of a church in “certain unique instances, during retreats, school programmes, or in holiday destinations,” according to the archdiocese.
However, in order to consult with the local ecclesiastical authorities on how to conduct such a Eucharistic celebration in the most appropriate manner, it is always important to get in touch with them.
Let us be clear here: every part of the celebration must be meticulously paid to (space, time, gestures, words, objects, vestments, song, music…) and every rubric must be observed, the statement continued.
It quoted Desiderio Desideravi as saying, “‘Such attentiveness would be necessary to prevent taking from the assembly what is owed to it; namely, the paschal mystery celebrated according to the liturgy that the Church sets down.’”
Bernasconi remarked in response to the archdiocese’s request for restraint, “I blame myself for possibly being a little naive.”
The priest claimed that his action was “misunderstood” and that the numerous “resentful letters” he got startled him.
He defended himself by saying that the parents of the youngsters who attended the summer camp were not dissatisfied with the way he celebrated Mass.
“One woman thanked me and expressed her gratitude to the Church for reaching out to her even at the beach, she said.
Any location is suitable for disseminating the Lord’s message, the priest declared.
Bernasconi serves as the Milan Church of San Luigi Gonzaga’s assistant parish priest.
At the request of regional Church authorities, the remark on the liturgy from the southern Italian diocese was reproduced in the official publication of the Archdiocese of Milan.
“If there were lacking our wonder at the reality that the Paschal mystery is rendered present in the concreteness of sacramental signs, we would actually risk being impermeable to the ocean of grace that floods every celebration,” the note, quoting Pope Francis, stated.