After several failed attempts since June 2016, thieves managed to sneak into the guarded shrine in Lendinara, smashed a protective glass case, and stole all of the gold on the statue of the "Black Madonna."
Police in the Münsterland region are investigating the destruction of Christian statues of holy figures since the end of October. One report said "not a day goes by without an attack on a statue. The local Christian community is concerned and upset by the destruction. An anti-religious motive is suspected and the police believe the vandalism is fueled by a "lust for destruction". Estimates suggest the cost of the damage to be a six-figure sum.
Parishioners praying in the chapel adjacent to the Church of Notre-Dame in Metz smelled smoke and discovered the crib burning inside the church. Police have launched a criminal investigation.
Anish Patel, a UKIP member and practising Hindu took to Twitter with a message defending Britain’s Christian identity. In response, Twitter users responded with racist epithets.
The Holy Trinity Church in Kristianstad has been given permission by police to have security guards at church services due to repeated thefts, disruptive and threatening behavior during services, drug and alcohol use in the church, and urination and defecation in the pews.
Pro-life supporters have been banned from setting up an official campus group by the University of Strathclyde Student Union on the grounds that such a group would violate "safe space."
The Equality and Human Rights Commission has told the Scottish government that the Scottish Catholic schools’ legal right to examine teaching staff for religious suitability should be reviewed.
Despite a formal invitation from Prince Charles to attend a consecration ceremony of Britain's first Syriac Orthodox Cathedral, the Home Office denied the visa applications of Archbishops Nicodemus Daoud Sharaf of Mosul, Timothius Mousa Shamani of St Matthew's in Nineveh valley of northern Iraq, and Selwanos Boutros Alnemeh of Homs and Hama in Syria because they "did not have enough money to support themselves and might not leave the UK."
A court has ordered the town of Publier to remove its statue of the Virgin Mary to comply with France's ban on religious symbols in public spaces. Failure to remove it within three months will result in a fine of 100 euros per day.
"Neither God nor master", "I love Satan", "Lesbi Power" and "Antifa" and other slogans were sprayed on the walls of the seminary during the night of December 3, 2016.