By Daniel Payne
CNA Staff, Oct 11, 2025 /
16:28 pm
A man urinated on the Altar of Confession of St. Peter’s Basilica on Friday before being taken away by security officers in the famous basilica, according to news reports.
The man climbed the altar and “urinated under the stunned gaze of hundreds of tourists,” according to the newspaper Corriere della Sera’s Rome edition. Video of the desecration was widely shared on social media.
Il Tempo reported that the man “was promptly reached by plainclothes police officers present in the basilica” and was escorted out of the church.
The latter newspaper claimed Pope Leo XIV was “shocked to learn of the news,” though the Holy See Press Office had not released a statement about the incident as of Oct. 11.
This is not the first time this year that a vandal has attacked the altar from which the pope says Mass.
In February, a man desecrated the altar by climbing on top of it and throwing six candelabras that were on the altar to the ground.
In June 2023, meanwhile, a Polish man approached the high altar as the basilica was about to close, undressed, and climbed onto the altar. Photos posted online showed the words “Save children of Ukraine” written in marker on his back. The Vatican performed a penitential rite after that act of desecration.
Daniel Payne is a senior editor at Catholic News Agency. He previously worked at the College Fix and Just the News. He lives in Virginia with his family.
