All cases

Vandals Destroy Shrine Outside Church on Pentecost

June 9, 2019, Germany

Unidentified vandals targeted the St. Josef Catholic Church in Ebingen, Albstadt during the night of June 9th (Whitsunday to Whitmonday). They damaged the shrine outside the church by smashing the glass pane, tore down flowerpots, and destroyed candles. They also smashed the mirror glass in the bathroom which is accessible from the outside with a rock. Property damage amounts to about 100 euros.

Church's Exterior Crucifix Destroyed

June 9, 2019, Germany

Unknown vandals damaged the wooden cross in the church yard of the Catholic Church in Harbach during the night of June 9th to 10th by tearing down the corpus (statue of Jesus) and completely destroying it.

Statues Destroyed and Attempted Fire in Saint-Jean de la Primaube

June 9, 2019, France

Unidentified intruders vandalized the church of Saint-Jean de la Primaube in early June. Mass books were burned and the perpetrators tried to set fire to the tabernacle. Moreover, the statue of Mary and a large cross were damaged and the statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was beheaded.

Man attacks Altar with Ax During Mass

June 8, 2019, Poland

At the beginning of the 7am morning mass on June 8th, a 46-year-old man got out of the crowd, ran to the altar and hit it several times with an ax causing damage in the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Rypin, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship. The congregation quickly stopped him and handed him over to the police who had him examined by a doctor. A breathalizer test showed that the in Rypin residing perpetrator was under the influence of alcohol, albeit less than 0.5 pro mille. The doctor decided to transfer him to a psychiatric hospital.

Scottish Local Councils Demand Right to Install "Buffer Zones"

June 7, 2019, United Kingdom

Scottish local councils ask for more power to introduce buffer zones around abortion clinics where they see fit without having to appeal to the UK government for permission. This call follows "intimidating" anti-abortion protests outside Glasgow, Larbert and Edinburgh clinics. However, buffer zones such as those would restrict anyone from certain actions such as praying, calmly talking to women about abortion and make them a criminal offense.

Persistent Vandalism of Church in Dierdorf

June 6, 2019, Germany

The Protestant Church in Dierdorf im Westerwald has been a target for vandalism for nearly two years. Reports beginning in July 2017 indicate that vandals have smashed windows, burned feminine hygiene products stuck to a wall to damage wall plaster, left graffiti on the walls and doors, knocked over park benches, and littered the area around the church every week. Property damage has reached tens of thousands of euros. The congregation is frustrated and horrified.

Fire Set On High Altar in Bad Dürrheim Church

June 5, 2019, Germany

Unknown arsonists lit all candles in the Catholic St. Johann Church in Bad Dürrheim on June 5th before setting fire to a flowerpot placed on the 300-year-old wooden high altar with several burning candles. A church visitor noticed the burning candles and the smell of something burning. As she looked for the source, she found that the flowerpot was almost completely burned and the fire had spread to the wooden altar tabletop. Just in time, she extinguished the fire with holy water and reported the incident. A book for pryer requests was also burned a little bit on one side. The immense damage that was done to the altar could not be estimated yet.

Statue of Parisian School's Patron Saint Smashed

June 4, 2019, France

On June 4th, the statue of Archangel Saint-Michel was found smashed into pieces on the grounds of the lycée-collège Saint-Michel de Picpus, a Catholic secondary school in Paris. Unknown vandals also heavily tagged the school's main entrance. The school had installed the statue of its the patron saint outside the school building after a dedication ceremony at the beginning of the school year.

Arson Suspected in Ankum Catholic Church Fire

June 1, 2019, Germany

The fire department in Ankum was called to a smoldering fire in the St. Nikolaus Catholic Church around noon on June 1st. When the team of 33 firefighters in six firetrucks arrived, the Swedish visitors who had initially discovered the two spots of smoldering fire in the church, had already extinguished them out with water. According to police, the church wasn't damaged by the fire and the fire department only had to inspect the site and quickly gave the all-clear. Police suspect arson and began their investigation with the help of the Swedish visitors describing two girls running out of the church just before they themselves entered and the church's surveillance video tapes.

Robbery from Esslingen Church

May 31, 2019, Germany

Between May 29th and 31st, several unknown perpetrators broke into the Osterfeld Protestant Church in Berkheim, Esslingen. They entered by climbing the porch roof and, once inside, stole three game consoles and eight controllers from the youth room as well as one digital and one SLR camera from a storage room. The value of the stolen goods was estimated at around 1,000 euros and the property damage amounted to around 2,000 euros.