Cell phone tower splits Catholic parish

SCHAUMBURG, Ill., July 10 (UPI) -- Some parishioners at a Roman Catholic church in the Chicago area said that a cell phone tower on the roof of its community hall could be used for pornography.

They have asked the Schaumburg Village Board to deny a permit for the tower at St. Matthew Church, the Chicago Tribune reported.

"Here is a facility put on your property, which is sacred ground, which is putting out, and being paid for, by everything that is blasphemous," said Eugene Hales, who is leading the charge.

Hales testified at a hearing before the board last month. The board was expected to announced a decision this week on the issue.

Some members of the board said they feel that Hales and his allies have put them in the middle of a dispute they have with the church, the newspaper said. The parish leadership approved the lease, which will bring in $20,000 a year.

Tom Moylan, head of Steeple.com, a Massachusetts company that works as a go-between for churches and telecommunications companies, told the Tribune he warns clients that they will lose leases if they get directly into the pornography business. He describes cell networks as "vanilla."