The word “Jesus” has been replaced with the word “Perù” in a Christmas carol in order not to offend the Muslims. This happened in a primary school near Pordenone, Friuli Venezia Giulia (Italy), where a professor taught a Christmas carol but changed the lyrics: instead of the word “Jesus”, the teacher inserted the word “Peru” to avoid offending non-Christian students, local newspaper Il Mesaggero Veneto reports.

The case exploded when two of the children started to sing the song at home and their parents immediately recognized that there was something wrong. They asked for clarification from the school’s dean who didn’t know anything about the initiative.

Politics unanimously condemned the incident. Sandra Savino, MP and regional coordinator for Forza Italia (EPP) said that this initiative falsifies history and threatens our Christian tradition, using children of 8 years old to fight a political battle.

The President of the Region Friuli Venezia Giulia Debora Serracchiani (PD, S&D) also said that the initiative is inappropriate.