All cases

Anti-Catholic Graffiti Sprayed on Galicia Church

April 14, 2019, Spain

On the morning of Palm Sunday, the priest and parishioners discovered graffiti sprayed on the outside of the Meside (Ourense) church. "Borregos" ("sheep"), "La religión es el opium del pueblo" ("Religion is the opiate of the people"), "Por la república" (For the republic"), a cross in a circle with a line through it, and leftist symbols were among the messages on the church.

Dillenburg: Vandalism in the Catholic Church

April 14, 2019, Germany

On April 14th, between 2 pm and 6 pm, unknown persons vandalized the Herz Jesu Catholic church on Wilhelmsplatz in Dillenburg (in Hesse's Gießen region). They damaged a holy water stoup and candles and scattered leaflets on the floor.

Break-in at Church in Herne

April 14, 2019, Germany

Between April 14th and 15th, unknown thieves broke into the Protestant Church Baukau in Herne by breaking a window. They tore one donation box from a wall, destroyed another one, and pried open several cupboards and fled with the donations.

Sacred Objects and Keys Stolen from Mödling Church

April 13, 2019, Austria

Unknown perpetrators stole a chalice, two ciboria, and a monstrance from the tabernacle, as well as all the keys in the sacristy from the parish church in Biedermannsdorf (district of Mödling) on ​​the evening of April 13th.

Break-in and Vandalism at El Copo Chapel

April 13, 2019, Spain

A chapel attached to the parish of the Sagrada Familia in the El Copo neighborhood of Málaga was broken into during the early morning hours of April 13th. The chapel door, as well as the tabernacle, were forced open and the sacristy was damaged. Nothing was stolen. Police investigated whether it was connected to the theft of ciboria containing consecrated hosts from another Málaga church a few days earlier.

Pro-Life Student Group Challenges Student Union Ban

April 12, 2019, United Kingdom

In April 2018, the pro-life student university group Aberdeen Life Ethics Society submitted an application for affiliation to Aberdeen University's Societies Union (AUSA) but was denied due to AUSA's policy which required the union to give “no funding, facilitation, or platform” to any pro-life group and forbids the “unreasonable display” of pro-life material on campus. Aberdeen Life Ethics Society has taken legal action against the University and AUSA claiming unlawful discrimination and the violation of equality rights protected by UK law.

Vandalism in Nienborg Church

April 11, 2019, Germany

According to a police press release, unknown perpetrators set a brochure on fire and poured wax on an altar cloth in the church in Nienborg. An investigation was opened.

Burglary of Evangelical Church Sacristy in Ratingen

April 11, 2019, Germany

During the night of April 11th, burglars broke into the Evangelische Kirchengemeinde Hösel. They gained access to the inside of the church by prying open two back doors. Once inside, they found a safe about 1.20 x 0.80 m in an adjacent storage room. The safe was completely stolen, but there were no items of great value in it.

Ten Intrusions and Thefts of Religious Objects in Vienne

April 11, 2019, France

The Archbishop of Poitiers announced that there had been an intrusion and theft of religious objects in the churches of Brion and Argenton in Deux-Sèvres. During February and March about ten thefts and attempted thefts of chalices and ciboriums were recorded in the department of Vienne.

Theft of Consecrated Hosts in Málaga

April 10, 2019, Spain

On April 10, 2019, the Diocese of Málaga reported the theft of two ciboria containing consecrated hosts from the Iglesia de la Trinidad in Antequera. The diocese noted that apart from the fairly low value of the ciboria stolen, the theft of the hosts was a "desecration of extreme gravity that deeply offends the Catholic faith."