French violence against churches increasingly serious

Anti-religious acts in France have become increasingly violent. That is concluded by two French deputies who will hand over a report to Prime Minister Jean Castex on Wednesday with statistics. In the report, they also suggest 11 recommendations to remedy the violence.

Earlier, figures showed that religious violence has been on the increase in 2021. Therefore, the two deputies, Isabelle Florennes and Ludovic Mendes, now present several approaches to the problem, Evangeliques reports.

According to Florennes and Mendes, one of the solutions is to integrate teachings about religions into the school curricula to avoid misunderstandings and tensions. Another suggestion is that each denomination appoints a security referent in various departments. That referent can then “communicate with State services.” In addition, the deputies propose that places of worship should receive more money for security measures. These measures should also be considered when building new religious buildings, the deputies write in their report.

In 2021, more than 1650 cases of anti-religious violence took place in France.