Blood Money

A Roman Catholic Bishop in Mexico has claimed that the church has no obligation to investigate whether its donations come from drug trafficking.

Speaking to the Televisa television network, Bishop Ramon Godinez said: "If they have money, they have to spend it; I don't know why such a scandal has been made of this. If a drug trafficker gives, we are not going to investigate if he's a trafficker or not.

"Let me explain: We live on this, on the offerings of the faithful. And we do not investigate where they acquired the money."

Earlier on he'd already claimed that money can start out being "dirty" but "can be transformed" when it enters the church.

The statements are especially interesting since only the week before Pope Benedict XI had just been explaining the terrible effect of drugs and corruption on life in Mexico.

"All this leads to various forms of violence, indifference and contempt for the inviolable value of life," the pope said.

Quite.