Catholic archbishop says Islam on the rise in Europe due to lax migrant policies, atheism, weak church

A prominent Roman Catholic archbishop warned that it won't be long before Italy and the rest of Europe become predominantly Muslim, owing to atheism and lax migrant policies, which he described as stupid.

Speaking to Italian Catholic journal La Fede Quotidiana, as reported by several news outlets, Italian Archbishop, Monsignor Carlo Liberati, stated, "In 10 years we will all be Muslims because of our stupidity. Italy and Europe live in a pagan and atheist way, they make laws that go against God and they have traditions that are proper of paganism."

The archbishop lamented that such "moral and religious decadence," coupled with a weak Catholic church and low attendance in seminaries, allow Islam to flourish.

Liberati also lambasted Italy's migrant policy, saying that the country is very welcoming and helpful of foreigners but tend to neglect the needs of the locals, especially the less fortunate. He added that he finds little motivation in helping the migrants, saying, "What is the point of so many migrants that instead of thanking for the food we give them, they just throw it, spend hours with their cell phones and even organise riots?"

The archbishop even called out the Catholic church for donating money to migrants, describing the act as "morally harmful" as it encourages migrants to depend on aid instead of working hard. "I think sometimes this creates a beggars' network."

According to Pew Research, the Muslim share of the population in Europe has steadily grown over the past few years, from four percent in 1990 to six percent in 2010. The firm estimates this figure to inch up to eight percent by 2030.

In actual numbers, the growth is more glaring. According to official Italian statistics, as reported by Mail Online, there were only 2,000 Muslims in Italy in the 1970s. This shot up to more than two million at the end of 2015.