Holy spirit

Churches are sacred places and any misbehavior inside them is considered a sacrilege.

On 10 October, a man went up to the altar of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City and did the unthinkable.

The man peed at the altar, shocking the hundreds of tourists inside, according to the newspaper Corriere della Sera’s Rome edition. A video of the desecration shared on social media went viral.

Plainclothes police inside the famous church escorted the unidentified man, whose pants were down, out of the basilica.

Pope Leo XIV was shocked when he learned of the desecration, but did not release a statement, EWTN reports.

Reactors to the video called for the punishment of the man for vandalism.

Meanwhile, the chairman of the Catholic bishops’ conference in Kenya announced at a Mass at the Subukia National Marian Shrine on 4 October that the wine to be used for church rituals should bear the coat of arms of the local bishops, the Catholic News Agency reported.

Archbishop Maurice Muhatia Makumba said this would ensure that the wine is authentic.

Kenyan Catholics welcomed the news as many believed the wine previously used at Mass “had lost its sanctity,” according to a BBC report.

That wine was reportedly widely sold in liquor stores, bars, and supermarkets, according to the BBC.

Makumba’s announcement during National Prayer Day coincided with the rollout of the new wine labeled as Mass Wine.

“The newly approved wine is not for sale at any business outlet,” he said, adding that the new wine was imported from South Africa and is owned by the bishops’ conference, according to BBC.