In Genoa:

Vandals have defaced the cathedral of Genoa, Italy, in an apparent retaliation after Archbishop Angelo Bagnasco spoke out forcefully against same-sex unions.

The words "Bagnasco shame" were spray-painted across the main entrance to the cathedral of St. Lawrence in Genoa. The words appeared shortly after Archbishop Bagnasco, the president of the Italian bishops’ conference, issued a statement opposing the legal recognition of civil unions, and saying that the government’s failure to enforce moral norms regarding marriage could open the way to all kinds of perverse relationships.

Police in Genoa told reporters that Archbishop Bagnasco was being accompanied by an armed guard because of concerns about his security raised by the incident.