Italian
archbishop under fire for comparing gays to pedophiles

Italy's top bishop compared a bill that would allow rights for same-sex couples to one that would allow pedophilia and incest. Archbishop Angelo Bagnasco is leading the fight against the bill, which he says would weaken the institution of marriage, according to the Herald Sun of Australia.

"Why say no to forms of legally recognized cohabitation which create alternatives to the family? Why say no to incest?" he was quoted as saying by La Repubblica, an Italian daily newspaper.

Italian government official and gay rights activist Alfnso Pecoraro Sciano said the archbishop's words made a "grave, foolish comparison which offends millions of people," according to the article. Prime Minister Romano Prodi, whose center-left party includes a significant number of Catholics, said the bill does not threaten heterosexual marriage. (The Advocate)