Dimitris Kouimtsidis
POLICE in the Basque Country have stopped a priest who was walking around the town and blessing people on their balconies and windows.
The parish priest of the church of San Severino de Balmaseda in Bizkaia broke lockdown rules by taking to the streets to bless his faithful.
Prior to Palm Sunday, which was yesterday, the parish posted on social media: “Go out onto your balcony with your bouquet of palms prepared, to avoid having to leave your home.
“Fran (the parish priest) will pass, blessing the bouquets on his way.”
According to El Correo, the priest embarked on his journey yesterday at 1pm equipped with his holy water, in order to bless the believers.
Unfortunately for him however, the Ertzaintza, which is the Basque national police, saw him and stopped him.
The priest then took to Facebook to say: “Despite complying with all the security measures, they sent me home before I got the chance to complete the whole tour.”
In a statement released earlier today, the Diocese of Bilbao excused the priest, noting that he had communicated the idea to both the Balmaseda city council and the Ertzaintza.
However, the police agents did not think that the blessing constituted enough of a reason for him to break the lockdown.
“We will continue experiencing Semana Santa on WhatsApp and YouTube,” said the Diocese.
