All cases
Reparation Prayers for Abortion Banned by Hospital Management
May 27, 2017, SwitzerlandPrayers in reparation for the victims of abortion have been held in the chapel of the University Hospital (CHUV) in Lausanne on the 13th of every month for the past 10 years, organized by the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX). Pierre-Francois Leyvraz, the CEO of the hospital claimed not to have known about the events when the media contacted him. He informed the SSPX that they would no longer have access to the chapel and that the chapel will be closed on the 13th of each month to prevent the prayer meetings. He noted that abortion is legal and they will not permit people opposed to abortion to meet in the hospital chapel.
Cross at General De Gaulle's Grave Vandalized
May 27, 2017, FranceTwo unknown perpetrators were seen entering the cemetery of Colombey-les-Deux-Eglises, where General de Gaulle's grave is located. One of the two men was suspected of having climbed on the grave and reversed the cross of the grave. Police are investigating.
ISIS Graffiti on Catholic Church in Sweden
May 24, 2017, SwedenThe Catholic church in Västerås was vandalized in several places with graffiti with the Arabic letter “N,” which stands for Nazarene or Nasrani, the Arabic word for "Christian". In ISIS-controlled areas, this tag has been used in combination with attacks on Christian’s homes and properties. Its use has been used as a signal: convert, pay a tax or be killed. Members of the parish are both frightened and upset about this attack. Cardinal Anders Arborelius has stated that he believes this is the first time a Catholic church has been tagged with ISIS graffiti in Sweden.
Berlin's Left-Wing Politicians Opposed Cross on City Palace
May 20, 2017, GermanyThe Greens and the Left party objected to plans to put a cross on top of the rebuilt Stadtschloss, the future site of the Humboldt Forum, saying the plan endangers the "open cultural dialogue" intended for the site. The Humboldt Forum is an art and culture museum project.
Medical Director's Dismissal Reversed
May 20, 2017, GermanyOn May 19, 2017 the Lüneburg labor court ruled that the termination of Medical Clinic Director Markus Fröhling was unjustified. In February 2017, Fröhling was dismissed after publicly voicing his support for the former gynecology chief physician Thomas Börner, who declined to do abortions in his department. This support caused criticism by both the media and politicians.
Christian Bookshop in Marseille Vandalized
May 19, 2017, FranceThe children’s display case window of the bookshop “La Bible pour tous” (The Bible for All) was found vandalized some time during the night between the 18th and 19th of May with a black paint bomb and graffiti tags reading “neither God nor master” (“Ni Dieu ni maître”), along with the anarchist's "A". The bookstore is adjacent to the church église évangélique Action Biblique Marseille.
Church Vandalized by Graffiti
May 18, 2017, FranceThe church of Saint-Joseph was tagged with the slogan “Down with love, long live solidarity” (“à bas la charité, vive la solidarité”). The graffiti was painted with green spray paint.
Crown of the Virgin Stolen from the Musée de Fourvière
May 12, 2017, FranceThe crown of the Virgin, was stolen from the Museum of Religious Art in Fourviere, shortly before 3:30 am on the night of May 12th. Asking for prayers, the Fourvière Foundation denounced the theft and noted that it was the symbolic value of the crown that made the theft most painful as it was given by families in Lyon to prove their devotion to Notre-Dame de Fourvière.
News Article Used Pro-Life Rally Picture to Illustrate "Religious Extremism"
May 11, 2017, GermanyNews and email website GMX published an article by journalist Mathias Heim about a recently-published study correlating certain head trauma with religious "fundamentalism." Although the article begins with “The problem of the religious fundamentalists has been a topic in science even prior to IS-Terror”, and never mentions Christians or Christianity, the photograph accompanying the article, with the headline “Injuries in the brain can lead to religious extremism”, depicts a peaceful Christian pro-life demonstration. This clearly negatively stereotypes Christian pro-life activists as "extremists".
Tabernacle Stolen from Chapel
May 10, 2017, FranceThe tabernacle of the chapel of Collognes has been stolen. This theft is not the first for this small chapel, three years ago the statue of Virgin Mary was stolen and the collection boxes have been emptied several times. The parish is very upset and the local police have opened an investigation. The chapel will remain open to the public as it is on the pilgrimage route of Santiago de Compostela and St. Francis of Assisi and thus has many visitors throughout the year.
Barcelona Church Vandalized
May 9, 2017, SpainA Barcelona church has been vandalized by unknown vandals. The doors were painted with graffiti of the anarchist's A and statements such as “Get your rosaries out of our ovaries” (“Fora els vostres rosaris dels nostres ovaries”). It is estimated that more than 40 churches have been vandalized in Barcelona in recent months.
Attack and Desecration in Catholic Church in Castellón
May 9, 2017, SpainThe parish church of the small town of Teresa - 1 hour by car from Valencia - suffered a robbery and desecration on May 9th after one of the back doors of the temple was forced, the money from the alms was taken and the chalices containing consecrated forms were thrown to the ground.
Man Filmed Attacking Cross in Austria
May 8, 2017, AustriaA group of youths filmed a man as he attacked a life-sized Jesus figure on a cross in the church square of St. Marein. The man, identified by police as a "37-year-old from the Weiz district," first shook the cross to make it fall but when unsuccessful he then proceeded to rip out a wind organ from the ground and hit the cross with it. The man’s rampage continued within the church grounds as he broke the two glass doors of the parish and several flower pots before being arrested. Damage is estimated to be well over €15,000.
Monastery in Alicante Vandalized
May 7, 2017, SpainOn the morning of May 7th the chaplain of the Monastery de la Santa Faz discovered seven intentionally-inverted crosses on the columns of the sanctuary, Satanic symbols on the armored glass case that protects the Santa Faz relics. Additionally, a liturgical prayer book and the diary where the acts of worship are recorded were stolen. Police opened a forensic investigation.
Molotov Cocktail Thrown at Virgin of the Helpless Image
May 2, 2017, SpainA Molotov Cocktail was thrown at the carving of the Virgin of the Desamparados (Virgin of the Forsaken) in the church of Real Convento de Santiago in Vélez-Málaga. The 17th century carving did not burn, but the base, skirt, and mantle were stained by the homemade device containing gasoline. A young man was seen running from the scene and police began an investigation.
Facebook Page Celebrates Arson of Churches
May 1, 2017, SpainA Spanish Facebook page appears to celebrate, and perhaps encourage, church arson by using the anarchistic slogan “The only church that illuminates is the one that burns” (“La única iglesia que ilumina es la que arde”). The Facebook page's profile picture is a burning church. Other photos posted on the page include cartoons mocking Christianity and the Catholic Church.
Defenders of Public Cross of Callosa Threatened
May 1, 2017, SpainResidents of Callosa de Segura opposed the City Council's decision to remove a cross next to the parish church entrance and took turns guarding it to prevent its removal. In response, they became the targets of threatening graffiti. On May 1st, graffiti appeared with a message aimed at the spokesman of the PP parliamentary group Javier Perez: “Javier Perez is dead” (“Javier Perez estas muerto”) and the second read: “A bomb to the cross” (“Una bomba a la cruz”). On May 17, 2017, a high court dismissed Perez's appeal to stop the removal of the cross but the case could still go to the supreme court.
Three Churches Discovered Vandalized in Three Days
May 1, 2017, SpainUnknown perpetrators broke windows and doors, damaged the altar and scattered objects in church of Santa Maria de Vallvidrera. Nothing was stolen. The parish of Sant Ildefons and the Hermitage of Santa Margarida were vandalized with graffiti, the former stating “the only church that illuminates is one that burns” and the latter “neither God nor country, nor King” (“la única iglesia que ilumina es la que arde” and “ni Dios, ni patria, ni Rey”). In the Hermitage of Santa Margarida the assailants also vandalized the interior by destroying vases, candle holders and other decorative items.
Burning Cross Painted on Convent of Cloistered Nuns
April 30, 2017, SpainThe façade of the church of Santa Magdalena at the convent was vandalized with graffiti of an inverted and burning cross. The Palma Police's Hate Crimes Unit took charge of the investigation and said it appeared the purpose of the graffiti was to try to intimidate the Christian community, particularly the religious women who live in the cloistered convent. Evidence appears to indicate that the graffiti was the work an extreme Leftist group.
ISIS Supporter Jailed
April 29, 2017, United KingdomThe ISIS supporter Akeem Samuels has been sentenced to jail for four years by a court in the United Kingdom. Akeem Samuels posted videos on Instagram where he encouraged terror attacks on Christians.