Church must 'isolate' mobsters

(ANSA) - Reggio Calabria, July 16 - Reggio Calabria city prosecutor Federico Cafiero De Raho said Wednesday that mob bosses who deem themselves to be above the pope himself are pagans.
    De Raho was speaking after a Calabrian bishop last week suspended religious processions in his diocese after a group of faithful following a statue of the Madonna purportedly paid their respects to a notorious crime boss.
    "The true 'Ndrangheta boss believes he is above the pope, as if he were God. This is paganism and the Church must condemn it as such," the prosecutor said, referring to the powerful Calabria-based mob.
    "The role of priests is fundamental. They must observe the Gospel and isolate the 'Ndrangheta," De Raho went on.
    "Deviating a procession and making the Madonna bow in front of a mobster's house is blasphemy," he added.
    A furore erupted when police reported the July 2 incident in which parishioners allegedly bowed in front of the house of Peppe Mazzagatti, an 82-year-old kingpin of the 'Ndrangheta. He is serving a life sentence under house arrest for health reasons.
    The incident occurred two weeks after Pope Francis publicly excommunicated the Mafia.