In Dublin, a stolen heart

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Seen this yet?

The preserved heart of Dublin's patron saint has been stolen from the city's Christ Church Cathedral, officials say.

The thief would have needed metal cutters to prise open the iron bars protecting the wooden heart-shaped box holding St Laurence O'Toole's heart.

Police believe it happened some time between Friday night and about 12.30 GMT on Saturday.

"They specifically targeted this, they wanted the heart of St Laurence O'Toole," a church spokeswoman said.

"It's completely bizarre," she said, adding that valuable gold chalices and gold candlesticks were ignored by the thief.

Bizarre? Sure. But, then, so is the Roman Catholic Church's grotesque obsession with relics, including the preserved body parts of its "saints."

That someone would actually want this specific "relic" is just part of the madness that is not just Catholicism but Christianity generally.