All cases
Church Vandalized with Graffiti
April 21, 2017, FranceDuring the Easter weekend the Church Saint-Géry in Quévy was vandalized with graffiti. The porch outside the church and sculptures inside the church, as well as the sacristy, were vandalized.
Jehovah’s Witnesses Outlawed in Russia
April 21, 2017, RussiaThe Russian Supreme Court has ruled that Jehovah’s Witnesses are an “extremist” religious group and therefore they have outlawed them. A Jehovah’s Witnesses spokesperson has stated that the group is “greatly disappointed by this development and deeply concerned about how this will affect our religious activity”. A spokesman of a Russian Baptist Evangelical union had defined the de-legalisation of the Jehovah’s Witnesses as an “unreasonable and dangerous step.” The Ministry of Justice “is beginning to distinguish between proper and improper believers. What will prevent these same officials tomorrow from condemning, say, the Evangelical Christians-Baptists, (Orthodox) Old Believers or Catholics? I think this approach is fundamentally wrong”, Vitaly Vlasenko, of the Russian Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists said.
Repeated Vandalism of Church in Hume
April 19, 2017, FranceThe Parish of Gujan-Le Teich in Hume was vandalized again, after having been previously vandalized in June 2016. This time a motorcycle, which had been left blocking the handicapped rail, was burned during the night and the fire could have easily spread to the chapel.
Arson in Church in Liege
April 19, 2017, BelgiumDuring the Easter holidays, candles were stolen from the Church of Seny in Liege and on April 19th, the Church was damaged by arson from candles set on fire in their plastic packaging.
French Visa denied to Eastern Christians on Ideological Grounds
April 18, 2017, FranceDuring an interview Jean-Jacques Brot, a French official responsible for the mission to host Syrian and Iraqi refugees, admitted that Eastern Christians who apply for visas often have the applications denied by French officials due to “their convictions” or “ideological grounds” (“leurs conviction” or “motifs idéologiques”).
Vandalism in Nantes Church
April 18, 2017, FranceDuring the morning of April 18th, a church employee discovered damage in small chapel in l’Église Sante-Croix. Vases were overturned, the tablecloth of the altar was crumpled, and the crown on the head of the statue of the baby Jesus in the arms of the statue of Our Lady of Bon-Secours was stolen.
Attempted Arson in Church
April 17, 2017, FranceJean-Louis Herbinière, the priest of the parish Saint-Samson in Calvados, discovered an attempted arson in the church. The tablecloth of the altar was blackened and had burn marks.
Cemetery Vandalized During Three Nights in One Week
April 16, 2017, FranceThe first act of vandalism in the cemetery near Saint-Laurent-de-la-Salanque occurred between the 12th and 13th of April, the second act between 13th and 14th of April, whilst the third act of vandalism occurred between the 15th and 16th of April despite the town having organized surveillance. During these attacks, tombstones were broken, vases were shattered, and pictures on the tombstones were ripped apart.
Longford Church Broken into and Tabernacle Stolen
April 16, 2017, United KingdomSt Michael’s Church outside Longford was due to open its doors for Easter Sunday Mass when the break-in was discovered. The church window was broken and the altar was severely damaged. Several items were stolen, including the tabernacle.
Church Vandalized during Easter
April 15, 2017, SpainDuring the morning of the 15th of April, the parish priest of Nuestra Señora del Carrascal discovered acts of vandalism: the facades had been tagged with graffiti, doors within the premises had been broken, and the fire extinguishers had been emptied in several rooms.
Easter Mass Celebration Evacuated in Nice
April 15, 2017, FranceDuring the Easter Mass celebration a man entered the church of Saint-Pierre d'Arène wearing an army jacket and ski gloves, acting in a menacing manner. He excitedly told the congregation "qu'on allait tous y passer" (it will all come to pass). The security forces quickly arrived on site and were able to arrest the man peacefully.
Easter Procession Ended in Turmoil in Sevilla
April 14, 2017, Spain“La Madrugá”, the Easter procession during the night from Maundy Thursday to Good Friday was interrupted and ended in turmoil with 17 people being taken to the hospital and one person was admitted to the ICU for head trauma. Eight people were arrested for the vandalism and the police investigated the connections and potential coordination of the attack on the Easter procession.
Blasphemous Attack against Church on Maundy Thursday
April 14, 2017, FranceDuring Maundy Thursday a young woman enter the Saint-Bruno Church, Bordeaux France, and pulled down her trousers and showed her stomach where she had painted a word in the color red. She then proceeded to proudly post the pictures of this blasphemous attack on her Facebook profile.
Social Worker Discouraged Parents from Christening Son
April 13, 2017, United KingdomA social worker from Kent met with parents who were considering placing their child for adoption and told them the chances of their son being adopted would be hindered if he were “christened into the Christian faith,” after they expressed their wish to have their son baptized.
Complaint Discussed for 2016 Cemetery Desecration
April 13, 2017, FranceIn the summer of 2016, a video circulated on the internet showing a model posing on the graves in a cemetery in Tarn-et-Garonne, France. The local residents discovered this video and filed a complaint with the county council. In January 2017, another video with the same model, the same poses, and the same location was found online and the local residents filed another complaint to the county council. This county council discussed in April 2017 whether to lodge a formal complaint in order to bring the matter before an investigating judge.
Easter Procession Disrupted by Threatening Teenagers
April 13, 2017, FranceOn the evening of April 12th, a religious procession in Toulon was interrupted by three teenagers who threatened the priests and nuns in the procession. One of the teenagers threw his backpack at them and all of them shouted “Allah Akbar”, “Long live Daesh” and “You will all blow up” (“Allah Akbar”, “Vive Daech” and “Vous allez tous sauter”). Once police were called the perpetrators fled the scene.
Cemetery Vandalized and Tombs Destroyed
April 13, 2017, BelgiumIn Ougrée, Belgium more than 50 graves were vandalized, several dozen tombs were destroyed and the crosses on the graves were thrown on the ground. The families of the deceased are upset that such vandalism occurred. This is the second time this month that the cemetery has been attacked.
Swedish Labour Court Rules Against Pro-Life Midwife
April 12, 2017, SwedenThe Swedish Labour Court upheld the judgments of the Discrimination Ombudsman and Tribunal Court in the case of Christian midwife, Ellinor Grimmark, who has been denied jobs at several clinics due to her refusal to carry out abortions and her outspoken stance on the matter.
Pro-Life Philosophy Professor Investigated then Fired from Catholic University
April 11, 2017, BelgiumPhilosophy professor Stéphane Mercier was fired by the Catholic University of Leuven after a student filed a complaint about an essay Mercier wrote in which he argued that abortion is the murder of an innocent life.
Teacher Prohibited from Wearing Cross Necklace
April 11, 2017, GermanySchool officials ordered a Protestant Christian teacher in Berlin to remove her cross necklace when she is in the classroom. Berlin's neutrality law prohibits teachers and civil servants from wearing religious symbols and clothing in public.