Hate Crimes against Christians Explode across Europe, Up 70% in One Year
The epicenter of such crimes was in France and Germany.
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A worrying spike in anti-Christian hate crimes has been revealed in a new report from a Christian persecution watchdog group.
The Observatory on Intolerance against Christians in Europe (OIDAC) reported that the number of Christians being targeted with hate crimes jumped 70 percent between 2019 and 2020 in Europe.
The epicenter of such crimes was in France and Germany.
The “Top 5 – Report 2019/2020,” came from two years of research and was issued to mark the International Day of Human Rights.
The report reveals “a multitude of incidents and examples of hate crimes as vandalism of churches and other threats to religious freedom in five European countries where it identified the most severe challenges for Christians.”
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According to the group, the two dynamics that threatened Christians were “Islamic oppression" and “secular intolerance."
“While secular intolerance is the driving dynamic in most of the cases and areas of life we observed, Islamic oppression mainly occurs in concentrated hotspot areas, in which Christian converts are the group that is mostly affected along with other residential Christians,” the report states.
“This phenomenon can occur in various forms, such as vandalism — antireligious motivated attacks against churches and Christian buildings — or even anti-Christian hate crimes against individuals,” said OIDAC’s director Madeleine Enzlberger.
Enzlberger also observed that restrictions such as freedom of expression, contractual freedom, and restriction of fundamental rights, have played a part in the phenomenon.
OIDAC focused on five European countries with the most social problems affecting the freedoms of Christians, those included:
- Germany
- France
- Spain
- Sweden
- UK
AS Brietbart reported:
It underscored what its authors call an “ideologically infused secularization dynamic that has caused a cultural shift on all levels of society, as it tries to relegate religion to the private sphere and ignores the fact that faith plays a vital role in a healthy society.”
Much of the hostility toward Christianity stems from “a strong and sometimes even extreme opposition to Christian morals derived from core beliefs,” it said.
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Professor of Sociology of Religion at the University of Vienna, Regina Polak, noted that anti-Christian hate crimes in Europe were underreported during the roll-out of the report this week.
“The number of reported Anti-Christian hate crimes in the OSCE-Region, in particular vandalism against places of worship, the desecration of cemeteries, and arson attacks against churches, is worrying,” Polak said.
“This is a call for comprehensive action, first of all, supporting victims, promoting awareness-raising measures and research.”
The OIDAC’s findings are meant to tackle religious illiteracy among politicians and journalists, not to mention the generalized public ignorance.
“Often secular intolerance is driven by radical and ideological groups, and it should not be confused with the reasonable concept of secularity,” Enzlberger said.
“Secular intolerance is not only hostile towards religion but also threatens the guaranteed neutrality of the state towards religion.”
In 2019, Hungary's prime minister said Christians, who are being protected from persecution today, may rise up and "save Europe" tomorrow.
Victor Orbán said:
“I’m convinced that in order to save Europe, those who could provide us with the biggest help are those whom we’re helping right now.
"We’re sowing a seed, giving the persecuted what they need and getting back from them the Christian faith, love, and persistence.”
