A homily during the Mass on the great day of the patron saint’s festivities of the Navarrese town of Cascante sparked controversy in the municipality due to a series of xenophobic messages made during the Mass by the Navarrese priest Jesús Planillo Bartos. In his speech, the priest linked the increase in the migrant population to the decrease in the number of parishioners in Spanish cities and criticised the fact that institutions provide aid “to immigrants”. “And the nationals?” he added.
The mass, celebrated last Sunday in the Basilica of Romero de Cascante and broadcast live by Navarra TV, was interrupted for a few moments by the murmurs of those present at the event. It was during the homily, during which the priest delivered xenophobic messages. Jesús Planillo Bartos began his speech by emphasizing that he had just spent a few days in Andalusia and that he was returning “with sadness” due to the decrease in the number of people attending churches. “In a town of 15,000 inhabitants that has three schools and an institute and where 40% of the population is Muslim, and I have nothing against Muslims, the church was full during religious events and now only 40 people attend on Sundays. It’s a shame, isn’t it?” “And he continues: “In another neighboring city, it is no longer 40%, it is 60% and entire families leave the neighborhoods because they really cannot live. And why? Because the public authorities grant all kinds of facilities to immigrants, which seems very good to me. And the nationals?
It was at this point that a murmur began to be heard in the church that forced the priest to interrupt his homily and make the congregation ugly. “I don’t want you to talk, we are in church,” he said, adding: “I am not talking about politics, later they will tell me that I am talking about politics. No, I am talking about the heart of a mother that we have come here to celebrate.”
The murmurs did not stop among those present at the Mass, which led another of the priests who officiated the ceremony to approach the priest and say a few words in his ear. Afterwards, Jesús Planillo Bartos apologized for his remarks. “If I have offended you, forgive me,” he said, adding: “I am not ashamed to say certain details, which are not intended to offend, but simply to teach the dispositions that God teaches us to heal our hearts.”
The ceremony was attended by institutional and political representatives such as the Minister of Social Rights, Mari Carmen Maeztu, the organizing secretary of the PSN, Ramón Alzórriz, or the members of the UPN Javier Esparza and Alberto Catalán.
