A priest advertising free burgers to tempt teenagers into church is facing a furious fightback from angry critics.
Father Domenico Pegoraro, parish priest of San Pietro church in Trissino, a comune in the province of Vicenza, Italy, has put up posters advertising the fast food suppers at special services.
The image shows a huge burger being held in a fist with ‘Free’ written beside it .
A message underneath states (in Italian): “A burger where you don’t expect it.”
As the image emerged on social media outraged worshippers branded the offer “blasphemy” and “sacrilege”.
Other critics slammed the priest for desperately following fickle teens.
Catholic church news outlet New Daily Compass writer Andrea Zambrano said: “If the excuse is to bring young people into church, it is the eternal strategy of defeat that produces only the anger of the faithful and does not attract a single young person.
“They will always choose the original, that is, McDonald’s”.
Another critic said: “Gen Z proves impervious even to the most refined marketing strategies.
“No one seems to be able to find a suitable communication tool, and this leads to a multiplication of clumsy attempts to which we can now add the church.”
But Father Domenico said he had faith in the stunt, arguing: “Anyone who knows our church knows that a sharing table is in the upper part of the building.
“It is separated from the altar, a sacred place where we will receive the boys initially.
“The church has always been a place of welcome.”
Now the great burger giveaway has won the blessing of the Bishop of Vicenza, Giuliano Brugnotto.
He said: “Young people these days are fragile and I believe it is necessary to give them space, even in sacred places.
“If Jesus were here today, I think he would welcome and approve initiatives like this.”
To find out more about the author, editor or agency that supplied this story – please click below. Story By: Clive Goodman, Sub-Editor: Simona Kitanovska, Agency: Newsflash
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