BARI – When the 9-year old son of a local gangster arrived for his First Communion in a bright red Ferrari, it angered the priest, according to the Corriere della Sera.

 His father, who is a mobster from Bari, is currently in prison and was denied permission to attend the service.

 That did not stop his son arriving in style around 13:00 on Monday at the Redentore church, in the notorious neighbourhood of Libertà in Bari. A few metres away, the Rai journalist Mariagrazia Mazzola was attacked by the wife of another gangster last year.

 This was not the only Casamonica style celebration though. At the same church on Sunday another family linked to local crime had organised a fireworks celebration.

 This was too much for the priest, don Antonio D’Angelo, who a little while before had urged his congregation not to make worship into a spectacle.

 “I have never seen such things that I hate and disavow,” said the priest. “They have nothing at all to do with the sacraments.” His words seem to have had little effect on some of those listening.

 The priest explained to the Corriere: “I would never have thought about what happened nearby a little earlier. I was angry because a few days before a similar event had already taken place for a little boy’s first confession.”

 The square opposite the church remains covered with firecrackers and batteries, and the local congregation remains bewildered.

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