With a letter addressed to the Archbishop, the Episcopal Vicars, his brothers, and all the brothers and sisters in the Faith, Don Mattia apologized for the blasphemous mass he celebrated on the mat in the sea of ​​Crotone.
Here is the full text of his apology.
I am writing a few but heartfelt lines to apologize for the celebration on Sunday 24 morning in the waters of the sea of ​​Capo Colonna.
I was there with a group of boys from the oratory with whom we shared a wonderful experience of working in the assets confiscated from the mafia and managed by Libera. On Sunday, the last day of the camp, we planned to celebrate Mass and then experience a day at sea before returning to Milan.
When we arrived at the pine forest where the celebration was scheduled, near the beach, we were unable to enter due to an event organized by another association that had reserved the entire area for its own activities. The camp organizers then took us to another beach, where, however, there were no shady areas and the sand was already hot. We looked for other areas suitable for the celebration, but not having found any, it seemed significant to me, in the context of the camp we have just experienced, to celebrate in the water, immersed in the “earth” that welcomed us to work and reflect on the days we had just passed. When a nearby family heard us, they offered us their mattress as an altar and I decided to accept.
It was absolutely not my intention to trivialize the Eucharist or use it for other messages of any kind, it was simply the Mass at the end of a week of work with the boys who participated in the Camp and the context of the group (boys who for a week celebrated and worked with me) seemed to me sufficiently prepared to preserve the sacredness of the Sacrament even in the simplicity and poverty of the means.
But the symbols are strong, it is true, and they speak, sometimes even in a different way than we would like. It was naive of me not to give them due weight.
I assure you that there was no lack of attention and care for the Word and the Eucharist, but out of context the form is more eloquent than the substance and a moment of prayer lived with intensity and meaning by the young people present there has hit the faith of many: I am deeply saddened by it.
Reading the beautiful press release from the Diocese of Crotone and Santa Severina, also relaunched by ours (Rediscovering the beauty of liturgical symbols), I recognize that I have lacked the attention necessary to enhance a mystery so great and so unworthily entrusted to our humble hands. I have always lived the Eucharistic celebration with a deep awareness of the immense Mystery of love that it conceals and conveys and in eight years of ordination that was the first time I have not worn at least an alb and stole. But I realize that even once is too much.
I humbly apologize from the bottom of my heart also for the confusion generated by the media coverage of the news and images: it was absolutely not my intention that it had such prominence, so much so that for the celebration we had chosen a place initially isolated and away from the umbrellas (even if then some people, having seen us from afar, joined the celebration).
In the Mass that I celebrated on Monday afternoon in the church in the parish of San Luigi, I asked the Lord for forgiveness for my superficiality that made so many suffer.
I hope you can understand my good intentions, tainted by too much naivety, and accept my sincere request for forgiveness.
With a prayer for our Church and for all of us, Don Mattia
Source InFormazione Cattolica
