Christian Lecturer Cancelled due to Student Protests
A scheduled lecture by the habilitated philosopher Sebastian Ostritsch at Hochschule für Philosophie München was cancelled two days before the event. Student protests and pressure on university management resulted in cancelling the planned discussion of classical proofs for God’s existence.
The philosopher and journalist Sebastian Ostritsch — a habilitated scholar, long-time contributor to the Catholic weekly Die Tagespost and private lecturer at several academic institutions — had been invited to the Jesuit-run Hochschule für Philosophie München (HFPH) to speak on classical and modern arguments for the existence of God. His lecture, “Is God’s existence a matter of rational knowledge? Thomas Aquinas vs. Immanuel Kant,” was cancelled two days before the event and the university deleted all public announcements under pressure from protesting students.
Ostritsch is known for his traditional Catholic worldview, such as moral opposition to abortion, adherence to the Catholic teachings on sexual ethics, and his stance that governments must prioritise the protection of their citizens in the context of mass migration.Although the planned lecture did not touch on social or political themes, a number of students circulated a protest call on social media describing Ostritsch as a “right-extreme fundamentalist” and urging mobilisation against his “dangerous political agenda.”
On the Tuesday before the lecture, a “moderated discussion” took place between students, university administration and faculty. Following that meeting, the professor who had invited Ostritsch retracted the invitation. The official justification stated that a “safe and open academic discussion” could no longer be guaranteed under the prevailing conditions.
Ostritsch later criticised the cancellation, pointing out that he would have welcomed a substantive debate and that the decision was based exclusively on his public positions and writings rather than on any “polarising statements” or misconduct relating to the planned lecture. HFPH subsequently affirmed its commitment to freedom of teaching, research and speech, while maintaining that under the “given circumstances” the academic discussion of the classical proofs of God would have been overwhelmed by social tensions.
This case is part of a wider trend at European universities where speakers with traditional Christian or socially conservative views face cancellation, often following protests from far-left student groups. As a result, academic freedom and freedom of speech have eroded in many institutions, leading to a climate of self-censorship — particularly among Christian students and scholars.
Sources: Die-Tagespost, Welt, Die Zeit, Die Presse
Image: X