Nativity Figures Defaced at Church in Villastanza

Case information
Incident date
Country
Italy
Place
Parabiago
Categories
  • Social Hostility / Intolerance
Attack Against
  • Faith
Perpetrator / Motive Indicators
  • Private
Hate Crime & Violent Incidents
  • Vandalism (all)
  • Vandalism of Church
  • Intolerance towards Religious Symbols
Place of Incident
  • Church
Bias Indicators
  • Lack of Other Motive
  • Pattern or Frequency of Attacks
  • Significance of Property/Structure/Location to religious community
Reported to Police
  • Yes
Response of Local Authorities
  • Investigated

Several nativity figures were deliberately damaged inside a church in Villastanza, a district of Parabiago. The same church had already been targeted by an arson incident in 2023.

As reported on 4 February 2025, the incident occurred at the Church of the Visitation in Villastanza, where unknown individuals damaged three ceramic figures from a permanent nativity scene located in the chapel of the Madonna Addolorata. The perpetrators specifically defaced the faces of the figures, directly targeting representations central to Christian belief. The damage was reported to the Carabinieri by parish priest Don Giorgio Guidi.

The church had previously been affected by a serious incident in 2023, when a nativity scene near the altar was set on fire, causing alarm and minor material damage. The recurrence of incidents involving religious objects has raised concern within the local parish community.

Sources