An Italian priest hopes to spread the word of God with a beauty contest for nuns. Just don't expect anyone in a swimsuit though.

Father Antonio Rungi hopes the pageant will showcase the physical and spiritual beauty of the nuns and not just "not just the plasticised beauty you see on television."

"Nuns are a bit excluded, they are a bit marginalized in ecclesiastical life. This will be an occasion to make their contribution more visible," he told the Associated Press.

The requirements for the pageant? Contestants must be between 18-40 in age and must be novices or full members of an order.

The pictures of the contestants, along with some personal information about them, will be posted on the Father's blog the beginning of next months for visitors to vote on.

Read more about it over at the Times and the AP.

Here's the transcript of an interview Father Rungi did with an Australian radio station on this contest.