All cases
Third Suspicious Fire in 18 Months at Syrian Orthodox Church
January 5, 2020, SwedenOn January 5th a fire was discovered in the meeting room of Syrian Orthodox St. Maria’s Church in Norrköping. After firefighters extinguished the fire, investigators classified it as arson. Just a month before, on December 3rd 2019 a similar incident occurred when someone poured gasoline outside the church and lit it. Those two fires were not the first time the building fell victim to a suspected arson attack. In August 2018 police investigated another case. The church assembly has been discussing plans enhance security, including enlisting volunteers take turns guarding the church at night to complement the police patrols and security cameras.
Two Nativity Scenes Burnt in Ivrea
January 4, 2020, ItalyPolice in Ivrea (near Turin) identified a 46-year-old woman suspected of setting fire to two church nativity scenes: one in the church of San Maurizio and the second in the church of San Salvatore on January 4th. She faces a complaint for damage. The fires not only destroyed the two nativity scenes with plastic statuettes, but in the Church of San Maurizio the fire practically incinerated a painting by Tullio Alemanni, "The Baptism of Jesus," which was located above the baptismal font next to the crèche, in addition to a fresco, also by Alemanni, positioned between the crèche and the baptismal font.
Baby Jesus Figure Stolen from Church Crèche
January 4, 2020, ItalyThe parish of Sacro Cuore in Trapani reported the theft of the Christ figure from the nativity scene in the church on January 4th.
Various Cases of Theft of Christmas Crib Figures Across Germany
January 4, 2020, GermanyAfter Christmas various churches in Germany were victims of theft, specifically the figures of Christmas cribs. On January 4th unknown perpetrators stole the valuable wooden figure of King Melchior from the Christmas crib of the Catholic church St.Maria in Göppingen. Another two thefts occurred , also on January 4th, in the church of Parnhofen and the church of Ganacker, in both cases the perpetrators stole the little Jesus figure out of the Christmas crib. On the same date the Jesus figure of the Christmas crib of the city church of Friedberg was stolen from the altar. Lastly, on March 21st unknown perpetrators smashed a window to gain access to the protestant church of Aldekerk, ransacked two closets and stole two figures of the Christmas crib.
Graffiti on Walls and Door of San Giovannello Church in Campobasso
January 4, 2020, ItalyOn the 5th January 2020, some vandals defaced the small sixteenth-century church of of San Giovannello located in the north of Campobasso. Writings, scribbles and profanity were made with a spray can. The area is often subjected with acts of vandalism and abandonment of syringes. The neighbourhood Committee San Giovannello asked for the placement of video surveillance cameras.
Martyr's Cross Smashed At Puente Genil
January 3, 2020, SpainOn January 3rd 2020, the cross of the martyr Antonio Baena Castellanos, which represented the genocide of Puente Genil, was thrown on the ground and damaged. Antonio Baena Castellanos was axed to death in July 1936 by the Republicans of Puerto Alegre. During the genocide, 157 victims were killed, 7 churches were completely destroyed and 28 private buildings burned to the ground. The police are investigating and searching for witnesses.
Statue of Virgin Mary Stolen from Saint-Étienne-du-Grès Church
January 2, 2020, FranceA statue of the Virgin Mary was stolen from the church of Notre-Dame-de-l'Assomption in the town of Saint-Étienne-du-Grès on January 2, 2020.
Nativity Scene Repeatedly Vandalized in Alice Castello
January 1, 2020, ItalyThe nativity scene installed by Alice Castello volunteers was repeatedly vandalized at the end of December and into the new year, with the figures broken and some of the statues beheaded. This was the third year in a row that this installation was attacked by vandals.
Infant Jesus and Cradle Burnt in Manger Scene
January 1, 2020, ItalyInhabitants of Pedemonte were shocked to discover that the figure of the baby Jesus in the nativity scene erected in the Piazza San Rocco church square was burnt on New Year's Eve. Only the charred remains of the figure were left inside the blackened wooden cradle.
Nativity Scene and Church Heilig Geist Set on Fire in Ratingen
January 1, 2020, GermanyAllegedly, in the night of new years eve, unknown perpetrators set the nativity scene and the church Heilig Geist in Ratingen on fire by setting fire on different site inside the church. The main cause of the severe damage is the soot that developed during the fire, which forced the parrish priest to close the church temporarily. The police assumes severe arson and is investigating the crime, additionally the state security department was informed.
Statue of the Virgin Mary Blown Up in Waldmünchen
January 1, 2020, GermanyOn New Year's Eve, a 22-year-old man blew up the statue of the Virgin Mary, which was placed in the garden of the parish of St. Stephen of Waldmünchen. The perpetrator also filmed the act. The statue stood on a one-meter-high grotto and was blown up with a banger. Parts of the statue were found within a radius of several meters, additionally a pile of rubble was left in the garden. The statue had a monetary value of 1.000 Euros, but the ideational damage is much bigger, for the grotto was made by a sacristan of the parish 40 years ago. When interrogated, the young man said he did it for the "nice feeling", he got reported by the police, but still walks freely.
Various Nativity Scenes Were Vandalised and Desecrated In Lombardy
January 1, 2020, ItalyIn the days before and after New Year's Eve, there were several acts of vandalism of nativity scene throughout Lombardy. This included the cities of Lodi, Brescia, Milano, Como, Concorezzo and Fabriano. Most of the vandalism targeted the statues of the infant Jesus, but often the acts were towards the entire crib. In one case the Jesus statue was decapitated, thrown on the trash or destroyed, and the pictures were shared on social media. In other cases excrements were left on the scene and the figures were vandalised or stolen. The teenagers who posted the acts on social media were identified.
Nativity Scenes Destroyed and Burned Down in Ypres Saint Martin Church and Neighbourhoods of Marke, Watermael-Boitsfort and Mousset
January 1, 2020, BelgiumThe nativity scene of Ypres Saint Martin Church has been damaged numerous times in the last period. Perpetrators tore the baby Jesus apart as well as smeared the figures of the saints with ketchup. The hat of Joseph disappeared twice, and the dolls were pulled apart. In another neighbourhood, Marke, the baby Jesus has also been stolen from the nativity scene and hung above the tunnel. In Watermael-Boitsfort and Mousset, the nativity scenes were set on fire. The cases have been suspected as arson.
Theft of Stola and repeated Contamination of Confessional in Church of Alzenau-Hörstein
January 0, 2020, GermanyIn the church "Mariä Himmelfahrt" in Alzenau-Hörstein, faeces were repeatedly left in the confessional; in addition, a stole was stolen. The suspected perpetrator was caught by chance during a traffic control.
Extremists Set Fire to Christian Journalist’s Car in Berlin
December 31, 2019, GermanyOn December 31st German pro-life journalist Gunnar Schupelius’s car was destroyed in an arson attack for which the so-called “Autonomous Feminist Cell” claimed responsibility.
Jesus Statue Beheaded in the Crèche of Caprino Veronese
December 31, 2019, ItalyParishioners at the New Year's Day Mass learned from the priest that the statue of Jesus was no longer in the cradle in the nativity scene in Piazza San Marco in Caprino Veronese because it had been decapitated the night before.
Christmas Figures Broken by Vandals on New Year's Eve
December 31, 2019, ItalyStatues in the nativity scene in Piazza della Libertà, Lizzanello (Lecce) were vandalized by unknown perpetrators during the night of December 31st. The faces of several of the handmade statues were smashed.
Christ Figure Stolen from Nativity on New Year's Eve
December 31, 2019, ItalyOn New Year's Eve, a man riding a bicycle was filmed by security cameras stopping at the crèche in Lecce's Piazza Duomo and stealing the Christ child figure.
Nativity Scene Dismantled Early Due to Repeated Vandalism
December 30, 2019, ItalyVolunteers from the volunteer association Pro Loco of Robbiate were forced to take down the nativity installation prematurely due to repeated vandalism. Vandalism included detaching wooden planks from the hut, dismantling pieces of the roof, and throwing away ornaments and furnishings. The display was dismantled on December 29th instead of January 6th.
Four Teenagers Vandalized Christ Child Statue in Nativity Scene
December 29, 2019, ItalyFour teenaged boys were identified and referred to the Public Prosecutor at the Juvenile Court of Bresci on allegations that they vandalized the statue of the Christ child in the nativity scene in the piazza outside the basilica in San Benedetto Po. The day after the incident, police found the head and torso of the statue hanging on an iron pole on the opposite side of the piazza. Evidence collected led the police to the four perpetrators, described as Muslims, born in Italy, of Moroccan descent. They reportedly admitted their involvement in the incident.
Statue of Christ Child Hanged in Mogliano Veneto
December 29, 2019, ItalyThe statue of the Christ child was discovered removed from the nativity scene in Piazza Berto in Mogliano and hung above the ground with an electric cable around its neck. Plastic cups littered the ground of the crèche.
Electrical Equipment Stolen from Live Nativity Set
December 29, 2019, ItalyThe electrical materials used for a live nativity performance in Canosa di Puglia were stolen on December 29th by unknown thieves.
Christ Child Statue Taken from Crèche; Thrown to the Ground
December 28, 2019, ItalyThe resin figure of Jesus was taken out of the public nativity scene in Parè di Conegliano during the night between December 27th and 28th and thrown to the ground nearby by unknown vandals. Other figures in the scene were toppled and the cradle was stolen.
Paint and Fire Attack on Evangelical Church in Germany
December 27, 2019, GermanyOn December 27th an anonymous group attacked the independent evangelical church TOS Ministries Tübingen in southern Germany. Several masked people simultaneously set a minibus owned by the church on fire and sprayed the entry area of the church with purple paint. According to the police, the attack resulted in damage of 40,000 euros. A group calling itself a "Feminist Autonomous Cell" (“Feministische Autonome Zelle” FAZ) claimed responsibility for the attack a few days later in an online letter.
Elaborate Nativity Scene Damaged by Vandals
December 26, 2019, ItalyThe nativity scene in Valgiano, which was nine meters wide and 8 meters high, with an area of over 30 square meters, most of which is occupied by water, including a central lake, a smaller body of water, and waterfalls was vandalized on December 26th. Unknown perpetrators threw detergent into the water, which may have reacted with chlorine, creating a sea of foam and a pungent smell.
Church Crèche Vandalized Three Times Around Christmas
December 25, 2019, FranceThe nativity scene installed in front of the Notre-Dame church of Dijon was vandalized with litter and garbage bags three times between December 20th and 25th.
Thieves Stole Baby Jesus Statue and Crib on Christmas Day
December 25, 2019, ItalyThieves removed the handmade statue of the Jesus child and wooden cradle on Christmas day at the Don Angelo Frare park near the parish church in Mosnigo.
Ourense Nativity Scene Vandalized Three Times Leading up to Christmas
December 24, 2019, SpainA nativity scene in the city of Ourense was damaged on the morning of December 20th, the Christ child figure was stolen and arms broken on December 23rd, and after being recovered and installed again on December 24th, the figure was stolen again on Christmas Day.
Children's Crèche Scene Destroyed by Vandals
December 24, 2019, ItalyDuring night between December 23 and 24, unidentified vandals entered a park while it was closed and destroyed some of the polystyrene figures in a nativity scene made by elementary school children. They also threw the figures into a pond.
Nativity Scene Vandalized on Christmas Eve
December 24, 2019, ItalyResidents in Ossi, a town a few kilometers from Sassari (Sardinia), woke on Christmas day to discover that the crèche installed by a local group (Pro Loco), in collaboration with the municipal administration, had been vandalized on the town's main street. The statues were torn up, dragged, and abandoned on the street.
Christ Statue Stolen from Crib; Beheaded and Abandoned in Cemetery
December 24, 2019, ItalyA statue of the Christ child, placed in the manger of the nativity scene in front of the parish church of Arbus, in southern Sardinia, was beheaded by vandals. The head was left in front of the municipal cemetery. After it was found, the head was glued back on to the body, but the local community was shocked.
Arsonists Target Set of Live Nativity Performance
December 24, 2019, ItalyAt 10:15 p.m. on December 24th, unknown arsonists set fire to the roof of the set of a live nativity performance in Revine. The scene, made with wooden planks and poles and covered with reeds that volunteers had recovered a few days earlier from nearby lakes, was located in the churchyard of the church of San Matteo. A bottle of alcohol and a pair of building site gloves, tools used by arsonists to set the fire, were found on the ground. Two teams of firefighters from Vittorio Veneto rushed to the scene and managed to tame the fire before it could affect the wooden structure.
Nativity Vandalized on Christmas Eve
December 24, 2019, ItalyMario Seghezzi, the mayor of Martinengo, reported on Facebook that vandals destroyed the nativity scene installed near the parish church: “I am truly sorry for the vile act that took place on Christmas Eve. An act that hurts the serenity, magic, and warmth of Christmas." Because the vandalism was recorded by video surveillance cameras, the mayor expressed hope that the three identified vandals would repair the damage.
Cemetery Vandalized; Crosses Smashed
December 22, 2019, BelgiumMore than a dozen graves at the cemetery next to the Saint-Jean-Baptiste church in Villeroux were vandalized during the night between December 21st and 22nd. Gravestones were knocked over and crosses were smashed.
Burglars Damage Church Door in Geislingen
December 20, 2019, GermanyBurglars damaged the door of the Geislingen church on the 20th of December. The thieves stole a money box that was secured with a chain and broke through the historic door to do so. Not much money was stolen but the property damage was significant.
Anti-Fascists Activists Stole a Baby Jesus in Castellón
December 19, 2019, SpainOn December 19th, the Anti-Fascist Brigades (BAF) claimed responsibility for the theft of a baby Jesus from the Plaza Mayor in Castellón. They posted on Facebook that they demand the release of Catalan politicians who are in prison to return the figure. In the place of the Statuette, they left a yellow ribbon, which is the symbol of the Catalan political leaders.
Researcher Who Lost job for Tweeting ‘Men Cannot Change into Women’ Loses Employment Tribunal
December 18, 2019, United KingdomOn December 18th, a judge in an employment tribunal ruled against Maya Forstater, a tax expert at the Centre for Global Development, who defended her right to say on social media that men cannot become ‘women’ by undergoing gender reassignment treatment. Employment Judge Taylor ruled that her belief that biological sex cannot be changed “did not have the protected characteristic of a philosophical belief.” She had tweeted that “men cannot change into women” as part of an argument about the government’s proposed reforms to the Gender Recognition Act. This was not deemed a "protected belief" under the Equality Act 2010.
Municipal Crèche and Christmas Decorations in Saint-Éloy-des-Mines Vandalized
December 18, 2019, FranceDuring the night from the 17th to 18th of December, the crèche installed on Place Charles-de-Gaulle and Christmas decorations at the town hall were destroyed. The heads of the life-sized figures representing Mary, Joseph and two wise men were cut off, and arms torn off. Garlands and fir trees in front of the town hall were damaged or stolen. “We are still in a Judeo-Christian country," said the mayor, "we can believe it or not, it remains deplorable to attack a crèche and decorations. We do that for the children... they were shocked this morning seeing all this damage."
Toulouse: Living Nativity Disrupted by Activists; Journalist Assaulted
December 15, 2019, FranceThe 2019 edition of the living crèche in Toulouse had to be shortened after the intervention of counter-demonstrators in front of frightened children. Around fifty far-left demonstrators whistled at the choir, chanted blasphemous songs, and insulted participants before coming to blows with some, arguing "that this event was illegal in a secular state."
Blasphemous Photo
December 15, 2019, ItalyAn obscene and insulting poster was discovered on display outside Rome’s Museum of Modern Art. Titled “ECCE HOMO ERECTUS,” the poster portrays Jesus as a pedophile.
Fire in Loire Church During Mass
December 15, 2019, FranceIn Saint-Just-en-Bas (Loire), 300 m² of the roof of the local church went up in flames on Sunday, December 15, during the morning Mass. An official of the commune sounded the alert when he saw an unusual smoke coming from the nave. The church was evacuated and no casualties were reported. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Angolo Terme Nativity Scene Vandalized
December 14, 2019, ItalyOn December 14th, unknown vandals beheaded the statue of St. Joseph, placed the ox and the donkey figures in an obscene position, and threw litter inside the small nativity scene installed by municipal volunteers in Angolo Terme .
Christmas Crèche Hit by Two Sets of Vandals
December 12, 2019, ItalyVideo surveillance captured the images of two sets of vandals attacking the nativity scene installed in the Lecce Piazza Duomo during the early morning hours (1:00 a.m. and 4:00 a.m.) of December 12th.
Catholic Youth Center in Munich Targeted by Vandals
December 11, 2019, GermanyA few weeks after four churches around Munich were painted with leftist slogans, the Salesianum, a Catholic youth center run by the religious community of Don Bosco, was vandalized with swastikas, SS runes, and "Widerstand Süd," a neo-Nazi network. According to reports, the location was likely not chosen by chance, because the Salesianum also looks after underage refugees.
German Church Windows Targeted by Vandals
December 11, 2019, GermanyThe windows of St. Peter's Church in Hüsten in Germany were damaged by vandals who were caught throwing stones. After witnesses heard the sound of stones hitting the church, police patrol cars caught the perpetrators. An investigation continues
Visit by Saint Nicholas Cancelled by School
December 10, 2019, FranceIn the name of secularism, the director of the Gustave Ansart school group, a public establishment in the commune of Thiant, Academy of Lille, refused to permit a visit from Saint Nicholas inside the school. This departs from a well-established tradition and one eagerly awaited by school children.
Graffiti and Vandalism on Church in Bisceglie
December 9, 2019, ItalyThe outer walls of the parish of Sant'Agostino in Bisceglie were vandalized with spray-painted graffiti during the night between the 8th and 9th of December. According to the parish priest, this is not the first time he has had to go to the police to file a complaint. "I have been asking for help to find a solution for 5 years," he explained.
Laica Europa Issues Statement on "International Secularism Day"
December 9, 2019, SpainEuropa Laica wrote to demand "the denunciation and repeal of the 1979 Agreements with the Holy See, and those of 1992 with other confessions", as well as the "priority of public and secular schools, free of religious indoctrination or of any kind, as a way of overcoming the inequality generated by an educational system in concert with the Catholic school financed by the public treasury." Additionally, the group demands the abolishment of the economic and fiscal privileges enjoyed by the Catholic Church, as well as the promulgation of a "Freedom of Conscience" law.
British Christmas Card Producer under fire for deeply offensive products
December 8, 2019, United KingdomA line of Christmas cards produced by British card company 'Love Layla' caused controversy for including messages mocking some of the deeply held beliefs of the Christian faith. The cards included taglines which call into question the Virgin Mary's miraculous conception, and which refer to Jesus as "a bloke that wore socks with sandals." Speaking to the Daily Mirror, James Mildred, for Christian Action Research and Education (CARE) said, "A lot of Christians will be deeply offended by this sort of thing...It highlights a fundamental hypocrisy that Christianity is seen as fair game to mock, disparage and insult."
Vandals in Action in the Cemetery of Salerno
December 8, 2019, ItalyUnidentified vandals looted some tombstones and graves, in the Cemetery of Salerno. They stole flower boxes, frames, and metal writings on the tombs. It was not the first time the cemetery was the target of vandalism, for which the institutions in charge demand more control of the premises.