Polish politician calls priest 'Satan'

The story below appeared in Tuesday's Irish Times.
It is interesting how news about religious topics manage to get such coverage.

Polish politician in hot water after calling priest 'Satan'
DEREK SCALLY
POLAND: ONE OF Poland's most controversial politicians faces suspension from parliament after describing the head of the Radio Maryja station as "Satan personified".

Janusz Palikot, a member of the ruling Civic Platform (PO), knew his attack on Redemptorist priest Fr Tadeusz Rydzyk would cause controversy. For 16 years, Fr Rydzyk has made the airwaves his battleground against forces he says are working to undermine Poland - from freemasons and Jews to homosexuals and the EU.

Billed as "the Catholic voice in your home", the station has achieved international notoriety - and received two warnings from the Vatican - for broadcasting anti-Semitic views, Holocaust denial and hate speech.

Questions have been raised, too, about the station's finances with reports that Fr Rydzyk lost up to €26 million in listener donations on the stock market.

But when Mr Palikot accused the priest of "stealing money" and of "spreading hate", he attracted the wrath of powerful conservative Catholics in parliament.

He has now offered to rephrase his remarks to avoid a threatened three-month ban from his party. "I was, am, and hope to remain a proud member of Civic Platform," he said. "I would like to remain in the party and avoid being suspended."

Outside parliament, though, his remarks have provoked hilarity for their echo of Fr Rydzyk's regular contributions to his own radio station. "You have to stand up against this propaganda, the propaganda of Satan," the priest said in a recent broadcast about the mainstream media. "Why do I speak of Satan? Because so much lying and evil can only come from Satan."

No stranger to controversy, Mr Palikot was forced to apologise to President Lech Kaczynski after suggesting that his poor health, including a brief hospitalisation earlier this year, stemmed from "alcohol problems".