The latest prayer controversy in Bologna emerged after priests began their Lenten ritual of canvassing their parishes, carrying supplies of consecrated water, in order to offer Easter blessings to shops, offices and individual homes.
Laity in Italy makes for a sweet anagram, but whether it means inclusiveness, as one interviewee claims, remains to be seen:
“What do you mean by this term ‘laity’?” [asked the Rev. Raffaele Buono, who oversees religious education in the Bologna schools]. “Two words: inclusive and exclusive. The French way of understanding laity is to exclude. You have to ban every religious symbol. In Italy, by tradition, we understand laity as inclusive. You have to put value on your ‘belongings,’ including your religious ‘belongings.’”
Sounds like a steaming pile of belongings.