He smelled a strange smell emanating from the glasses: the sacramental wine was cut with bleach.

Ce prêtre a frôlé la mort durant la messe de ce samedi. ILLUSTRATION UNSPLASH – Sebbi Strauch

This Saturday, February 24, 2024, an Italian priest came close to death after noticing that the wine served during mass was cut with bleach in Calabria, Italy.

This is not the first time that the Italian priest Felice Palamara has been the victim of this type of intimidation. A month ago, his car was set on fire when he parked it near his church, reports the Italian daily La Repubblica.

The priest placed under police protection

This Saturday at around 6 p.m. in Pannaconi in Calabria (Italy), the priest who has been officiating in the town for 10 years, was the victim of new intimidation. The man was celebrating mass when he smelled a strange odor coming from the wine and water he was serving. These had been replaced by bleach, reports the Parisien.

The mass was directly interrupted and the police alerted. The man, who is asthmatic and suffers from heart problems, was placed under police protection. According to La Repubblica, "this is not the first time that Felice Palamara has been the victim of intimidation, and he says he is convinced that this is not the case. is not the work of his parishioners, with whom he has maintained a relationship of affection and trust for decades".

The town mayor had resigned during the summer

During the summer, the mayor of Pannaconi resigned after an investigation revealing a potential influence of the local (Calabrian) mafia within the town hall. The town has been administered since the month of August by a prefectural commissioner. Since this period, intimidation had increased, particularly against priests.

Upon hearing of the situation, the bishop of the diocese launched an appeal to "Christian communities so that they do not allow themselves to be discouraged by violence".