A beauty content - for nuns!

"You really think all nuns are old, stunted and sad?" and, "Being ugly is not a requirement for becoming a nun," said the Rev. Antonio Rungi in recent interviews with the BBC and CNN.

Rungi was speaking about an internet beauty contest - 'Miss Sister 2008' - for nuns, which he hopes to run in September. He draws the line at naughty bikinis, but the contestants will be able to choose whether to send photos of themselves with their head modestly covered, or not.

Internet users will then be able to vote, and choose the eventual winners. The contest has drawn criticism from Catholic organisations, which say that it belittles the role of nuns, but Rungi has defended his idea, saying that the original idea came from the nuns he works with.

UPDATE: Rungi cancelled his beauty contest on the 26th Aug, after incurring the displeasure of church elders.