CROSS RULING 'IRRESPONSIBLE', BISHOP

CROSS RULING 'IRRESPONSIBLE', BISHOP

(ANSA) - Vatican City, November 3 - A European court ruling barring crosses from Italian classrooms is ''irresponsible,'' a top Italian bishop said Tuesday.

''It is really irresponsible to want to cancel...the cultural and educational weight'' of the crucifix, said Msgr Vincenzo Paglia, head of the Italian bishops' intercultural dialogue commission.

The European Court of Human Rights upheld a suit from a Finnish-born Italian citizen Tuesday, saying the crosses in her children's classrooms flouted freedom of religion.

The ruling unleashed a political storm with conservatives condemning it and progressives praising it.

The Vatican said it would have to wait for the explanation of the ruling before reacting.

The Italian government has appealed against the verdict, which will otherwise take effect in three months.