The priest apologized after removing the masks and arguing that they are just “a business.”
On Palm Sunday, priest Rolando Peña, 60, ripped off the masks of at least 2 parishioners, arguing that their use is “sloppy” and that they are just a business.
The incident occurred in the municipality of Corquín, Copán department, and was published by the Copán Sud TV channel, then broadcast by Honduran media and on social media, according to a publication from El Comercio.
“We don’t lose our culture, our religion. Look, I look at all this bullshit, you see …” says the priest as he took off his masks from the faithful and threw them away.
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“(…) they are a business” says the priest and then warns that he will not let people who use it enter Mass. Immediately, the people present proceed to remove the mouthpiece.
The priest was identified as Rolando Peña, 60. Photos Image of an illustrative and non-commercial nature / https://bit.ly/3sLm1ol
The priest, dressed in a red chasuble, as the liturgical calendar dictates for Easter, boasted of walking without any protection from the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Look at me as I walk, see … Take it off, let’s go free, let’s find out,” he says. “I’m not leaving here until the masks are removed,” he added.
This Monday, interviewed by the HCH channel, the Peña priest justified his attitude in his “way of being” and said he was just kidding.
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“We have to trust God. This slut (the mask), I use it, but that won’t save me from cancer, anemia or any other disease. People misinterpret the things I say.” , assured according to publication of the Commerce.
“If it affects someone, I apologize, but it’s my way of being,” he insisted.
On Monday in an interview the priest apologized for the fact. Photos Image of an illustrative and non-commercial nature / https://bit.ly/3sLm1ol
Darwin Andino, bishop of the Diocese of the West, to which the temple of Corquin belongs, clarified that the priest “does not have the authority” to force parishioners to breach biosecurity measures.
“If he doesn’t want to wear the mask, don’t wear it, but people have to wear it because there is contagion,” the bishop added in statements to local media.
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With nearly ten million inhabitants and a sub-record of samples, the Central American country accounts for more than 187,000 cases of Covid-19 and 4,600 deaths.
The Honduran Catholic Church summoned parishioners to Easter celebrations with biosecurity measures and physical distancing in temples, while suspending processions for fear of contagion.