Arson Attacks on Christian Churches Surge

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Arson Attacks on Christian Churches Surge

Christian churches around the world are continuing to be targeted by arson attacks, with many being completely destroyed.

At the beginning of September, the Church of the Immaculate Conception in France went up in flames.

However, this was just the latest major historical church in Europe to burn.

Authorities are trying to determine what is driving the attacks.

Data points to Islamists and anti-Christian radicals as the primary culprits.

According to France Bleu, a suspect with a history of committing arson attacks on churches was arrested for setting fire to the Saint-Omer church last month.

He had recently been released from prison and allegedly targeted churches multiple times immediately after his release.

The suspect, Joel Vigoreuz, reportedly posted leftist content and videos of Islamic preachers on his social media.

“There is a general anti-Christian sentiment in France, from its anti-clerical and radical secularist history, which has gone unchallenged for years,” Anja Hoffmann of the Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians (OIDAC) in Europe told the Daily Caller.

“It should not come as too much of a surprise that these attitudes might at some point translate into violent action.”

She stated an “increasing number of perpetrators” of the crimes targeting Christians are members of anti-Christian “ideological, political or religious groups.”

Hoffmann pointed to examples of vandalism from both radical Islam and the far Left.

During 2024, OIDAC Europe recorded the defacement of one church, two chapels, five crosses, and over 50 graves.

According to Hoffmann, they were desecrated with phrases like “Submit to Allah and “I will make war on the Christian world.”

In July 2024, the Notre-Dame-du-Travail church in Paris was vandalized with “Submit to Allah.”

A knife was also driven into the wooden throat of a statue of the Virgin Mary, La Croix reported.

In March, LeJournal du Dimanche reported that an Egyptian national with ties to the Islamic State was arrested for planning an attack on the Notre-Dame-de-Paris Cathedral in France.

That same month, an Albanian man was arrested for interrupting a Holy Thursday mass in the Sainte-Eulalie church.

The suspect was shouting “Allahu Akbar,” according to Midi Libre.

In May, a Turkish man reportedly shouted “Allahu Akbar” after knocking over a Catholic cross with his van, according to the outlet FDS.

“In short, it would seem that a full-blown jihad has been declared on the churches of France, and its godless leadership is looking the other way when not actively providing cover,” Raymond Ibrahim, author of Defenders of the West, states on his website that documents Islamic attacks against Christians.

Hoffmann noted how the church of St. Bernadette in Montpellier was vandalized with the slogan “The only church that illuminates is the one that burns.”

Photos show an anarchist symbol graffitied next to the ominous threat, reported Midi Libre.

OIDAC Europe collects data on anti-Christian hate crimes.

Hoffmann says France “consistently” ranks in the top three countries in the continent.

The group documented 106 anti-Christian hate crimes in its 2022 report, with only Italy and Germany having higher numbers.

The report defers to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s (OSCE) definition of a hate crime:

“A criminal act motivated by bias or prejudice towards particular groups of people.”

OIDAC Europe’s report says the majority of hate crimes were committed by far-left groups.

However, there were also attacks by “far-right groups, satanist groups, and radical Islamist groups.”

One of the most common attacks on churches is the destruction of tabernacles, according to The Catholic Arena.

The outlet noted it is the state’s responsibility to protect most churches.

French President Emmanuel Macron promised last year to increase funding for repairing churches.

Nevertheless, the destruction of churches has still not stopped.

From Aug. 25 to Sept. 1, OIDAC Europe documented six arson and attempted arson attacks on churches in Europe.

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