Thieves have stolen three silver ciboria, chalices and the contents of collection boxes from the Corpus Christi church.
A theft occurred in the Church of Notre Dame de Quézac, sometime between Thursday, January 14th and Friday 15th. A ciborium, a gold sacred vase containing a hundred consecrated Hosts, was stolen from a tabernacle, a small wardrobe. The police have opened an investigation.
The sixteenth century church Saint-Louis was entirely burnt out, images, including that of the baby Jesus, were desecrated, and the ciborium containing consecrated Hosts was stolen.
This time, thirteen crucifixes were torn from their graves and were thrown to the ground, broken, or planted upside down.
A new church dedicated to Our Lady of Iveron, in the town of Rokitno in the Rovno region (Western Ukraine), was desecrated by vandals.
Abel Azcona announced he has 32 new consecrated Hosts stolen by fans who went to different Masses to get them.
As part of an exhibit, Abel Azcona placed the hosts on the ground in a public art gallery to form the word “Pederasty".
A musical group called "Les Chrétiens des Alpes" (Christians of the Alps) filmed a YouTube video in the church of Saint-Étienne in Dingy-Saint-Clair, which portrays priests in a sexually vulgar manner.
The perpetrators stole money from the cash register of the church, and lit fires in five different locations in the building.
They stole a tabernacle, ciborium, chalices, patens, a candelabrum, and some of the sound equipment from the Church of San Ignatius of Loyola
The unknown perpetrators broke into the Church of our Lady of Carmen in the Spanish town of Rincon de la Victoria, Andalusia, smashed wooden statues of the Virgin Mary and Jesus on the cross, and spray painted "Allah" on the wall.
The altar, tabernacle, and pews of the nationally-known church were desecrated by swastikas and other Nazi symbols carved into the wood, and acid poured onto the stone.
On the morning of October 14, the Tabernacle was forced open and the Ciborium containing ten consecrated Hosts was stolen.
La Chapelle du Champ Fleuri in Masny, was the victim of desecration: The altar was overturned, the organ in pieces, Communion wafers littered the ground, a statue of the Virgin Mary, venerated by Catholics as the mother of Jesus, was decapitated, and liturgical vestments were burned
Intruders into the church of Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul in Blanzy damaged the Tabernacle by attempting to force open the door, damaged the organ, and set fire to the statue of the Virgin Mary.
In the afternoon of Saturday, September 19, 2015, the church of Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul d’Habas (Landes) was badly vandalized. Various liturgical objects were desecrated: the altar was stained by food, crosses inverted, missals torn. The entire church was degraded with scattered flowers, candles, sheets of paper and posters torn. A complaint with the police was filed.
A small chapel in Le Brethon, France, was robbed of all of its sacred objects during the week from Monday 14 to Friday, September 18. The few sacred objects it housed have all disappeared, namely, a processional cross, statuettes, votive offerings and all of the crosses. Additionally, a painting of Mary Magdalene, donated by an amateur painter was also stolen. Because of the isolated location of the chapel, and that it is always open to the public, officials have not been able to determine exactly when the theft occurred.
A confessional in the church Saint-Gilles de L’Ile-Bouchard (France) was burned and the organ was damaged on the 18th of September.
L’église Saint-Martin in Sangatte, France is yet again a victim of vandalism. On September 16th, a volunteer at the Blanc-Nez Pentecostal parish returned to Saint-Martin to close the doors for the evening and immediately discovered smoke emerging from the church. She also noticed broken candles littering the ground and that small decorations were taken down. Thick smoke surrounded the altar of wood and marble, and it was apparent that the small fire could have easily spread to the wooden furniture and carpets, completely destroying the church.
Unknown perpetrators broke into the St. Pius Church and stole the tabernacle with consecrated Hosts, offertory boxes, and sprayed fire extinguishing powder all over the inside of the church.
Burglars broke into a Sunderland church, smashed a window (causing more than £1,000 in damage) and used fire extinguishers to try to break down doors. Although nothing was stolen, someone urinated in the holy water font.
On the 3rd of September 2015, the destruction of 43 graves was discovered in the small French village of Montjavoult. Swastikas were spray-painted on 6 of them and crosses were broken off and left on the ground. Authorities have reason to believe that this act was political in nature, and not just the prank of drunk young people. The investigation is ongoing.
During the evening of the 26th of August, a Lutheran church Åmåls, Sweden was attacked by arsonists. The perpetrators used at least one Molotov cocktail to set fire to the building, and broke several windows in the church and the parish hall. The motive for the arson is unclear.
On the 26th of August, local officials destroyed the Orthodox church St. Athanasius, which is located in the village of Dhermi, in southern Albania.
A Statue of the Virgin Mary has been purposely destroyed, its chest impaled on a spit, and the other pieces of the statue were left in a plastic bag on the side of a road. This event happened next to the chapel Notre-Dame-de-la-Paix a few days before the 23rd of August. The sight of the destroyed statue has shocked locals, and drivers passing by haven't dared to disturb the broken pieces. No explanation yet has been given to this act of vandalism.
The chapel Saint-François of Rennes was the victim of an attempted arson during night between August 13 and 14th.
On the 3rd of August, local policemen found that 40 graves had been desecrated in a cemetery in the town of Labry, in northeastern France. 35 funeral ornaments, mostly crucifixes and plaques were displaced, and 4 were broken.
The Saint-Roch cemetery in Castres (Tarn) was vandalized on 15th April, 2015. Dozens of tombs were ransacked, funerary objects systematically thrown to the ground.
During Easter, unknown perpetrators profanated buried corpses in tombs in the churchyard in Lębork in the district of Pomerania. The bones were taken from their coffins.
Five French churches were the victims of theft, vandalism and desecration within three days at the hands of unknown perpetrators.
An incident of desecration took place in the chapel of Barbizon, near Fontainebleau. Vandals broke open the door of the tabernacle, which is the place where the consecrated wine and host are kept. Both religious items, which carry significant meaning for Catholics, were thrown on the ground. Nothing was stolen.
A statue of the Virgin Mary was vandalized by a group of North-African immigrants with a Muslim background, according to locals. The parish priest of St. Barnaba, Fr. Alessandro Scarda, recounted: “They broke the statue in two pieces, and they then kicked it as if it was a ball. Afterward, they urinated onto the pieces.” The people of the parish gathered the remains of the statue, cleaned and glued them. The small statue was put back at its original location. The parishioners have gathered to pray at the statue after the vandalism. The police are investigating to confirm the identity and the background of the perpetrators. Muslim organizations and public figures have condemned the act.
Unknown perpetrators profanated a tabernacle. A chalice and consecrated hosts were stolen. Police was notified about the devastation, but the perpetrators remain unknown. The following Sunday morning Mass in the church had to be moved to the neighboring town of Dagneux. The Notre-Dame-des-Marais church had to be closed for five days.
The Church of St. Hilary of Berry-au-Bac in Aisne was devastated by vandals. The perpetrators have not only stolen valuable things, but also vandalized, defiled and profaned holy items of the church, including the church's tabernacles. The vandals remain unknown.
The image of Virgin Mary was completely destroyed by a fire in the chapel of San Sebastian Hospital in Palma del Rio. Evidence suggests that the fire was intentionally caused by arsonist, because nothing else got burnt. However, the mayor reminded people that it may have been the result of an unfortunate accident due to wiring. Many local faithful could not stop tears, because the image, an object of faithful adoration, was one of the oldest in Palma del Rio.
The model posed for the photographer naked in the interior of the Bilbao church. Many local faithful found it blasphemous and repulsive for the Christian religion. The photographer came to the church without the parish priest’s permission. He claimed that he took the keys from his mother who is responsible for cleaning the church.
A statue of Jesus Christ was removed and damaged by the governing local left-wing Galician nationalist party BNG in San Sadurnino in La Coruna.
“Robbers” entered the Church of Sacré-Cœur in Lourdes sometime during the night of March 27-28, 2014 and broke open the poor boxes. More importantly, they broke open the tabernacle and stole the ciborium with the consecrated hosts that it contained. The parish priest responded by organising a prayer session.
Upon arriving at the church on a Monday morning, one of the priests in charge of serving the parish of Saint-Étienne discovered that the door to the chapel was open and the tabernacle had been robbed. The hosts that had been stolen were consecrated ones, considered by Catholics to be sacred. The tabernacle was the only thing robbed. Police rapidly intervened and dusted the area for fingerprints. The community reacted in a spiritual way, organising a prayer session.
Ukrainian citizen, French resident, Inna Shevchenko stood outside the Texas state Capitol in Austin to protest abortion laws on March 8th, 2014. She had “Your Bible doesn’t control my vagina” written across her bare chest as she tore out pages of a Bible.
A large cement monument of a cross was covered in graffiti during a left wing “Antifa” event on 8 February. It remained covered in graffiti for weeks despite services clearing up the city in preparation for another event. It seems that desecrated religious buildings and sites do not enjoy the same respect as other parts of the city.
When Cardinal Antonio Maria Rouco, Archbishop of Madrid and President of the Spanish bishops’ conference, was walking from his vehicle to enter the parish of Santos Justo y Pastor, on Palma street, Madrid, five Femen activists attacked him. With stained red underwear and naked chests they shouted “Abortion is sacred”. The Cardinal, escorted by priests managed to enter the parish but the shouting continued outside as they celebrated the Eucharist.
Dozens of candles were burned and destroyed, three chairs were broken and urine left by vandals in the church of Saint-Remi in Charleville-Mézières. Cans of beer were also left on the floor, curses were written on the guestbook. Obscene drawings were scribbled into the book of prayers.
The front of the Church of St. Augustine in Trani was splattered with paint and the stone lion in the courtyard of the church was spray painted.
The figure of Baby Jesus in the manger which was part of a nativity scene in Ceranova was destroyed. The head and the fingers of one hand were broken off. The pieces of the manger and the figures of Mary and Joseph were carried inside to prevent further vandalism.
20-year-old Femen activist Josephine Witt jumped onto the altar of Cologne’s Catholic cathedral during Christmas services on December 25th. Her upper body naked and “I am God“ was written on her chest. Security staff removed her, and Cardinal Meisner continued the liturgy. Many people commented critically, saying that Ms Witt would have had other possibilities of voicing her opposition to the Church.
Satanic shapes and writings such as “Satan lives”, was painted on the faces of the saints and a statue of Mary in the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Foggia.
The front of the Church of Artallo (fraction of Imperia) was desecrated with offensive graffiti.
Crucifixes in both the Church of St. Bartholomew and the Church of San Pier Fiorelli in Prato were damaged. In the Church of St. Bartholomew, someone climbed on the structure before the crucifix and "shook it until he pulled both arms off, which were attached to the media." This crucifix had survived the bombing in 1944 unscathed, but not this deliberate violent act.
Two Madonna statues were beheaded in Imperia, and are irreparably damaged. One was located at the centre for the disabled in the square ISAH De Negri. The other was located in the sanctuary near the church of San Sebastiano Via Agnesi.