(ZENIT News / Rome, 10.02.2025).- Paris, France is confronting a troubling escalation of hostility against Christians, with new figures showing a sharp increase in attacks on churches, religious symbols, and believers themselves. In just the first five months of 2025, authorities have recorded 322 anti-Christian incidents, a 13 percent rise compared to the same period last year.
What has long been described as an underreported reality is now impossible to ignore. Eighty-six senators, nearly a quarter of the French upper chamber, have issued a public appeal urging the government to take decisive measures to safeguard Christians as fully as it protects other religious communities. The appeal, initiated by Senator Sylviane Noël and published on the Boulevard Voltaire platform, was signed by lawmakers across different political alignments.
The statement does not mince words: “Is Notre Dame still burning?” it asks rhetorically, recalling the cathedral’s fire as a symbol of broader neglect. It details a sharp rise in thefts of sacred objects—820 cases last year, compared with 633 in 2022—alongside desecrations, arson, and even physical assaults. “Not a week passes without regional press or social media reporting new attacks, from vandalism and profanation to deliberate fires or violence against the faithful,” the senators warn.
Recent episodes illustrate the scope of the crisis. In the Landes region alone, at least 27 churches have been vandalized in a matter of weeks. In Nice, a roadside cross was desecrated on the Boulevard de la Madeleine. And in Lyon, tragedy struck the Assyrian-Chaldean community when 45-year-old Ashur Sarnaya, who had fled persecution in Iraq, was murdered outside his home on September 10 while livestreaming on social media.
The senators are now calling for the creation of a national registry to monitor anti-Christian acts, coupled with a support system for victims. Such a mechanism, they argue, must be accessible, transparent, and efficient. Beyond the statistics, they frame the issue as one that touches on France’s very identity.
“What is at stake,” the appeal declares, “is our national cohesion, our fidelity to the history of France and its Christian roots, and our true adherence to the principle of laïcité—not as the erasure of religion, but as the guarantee that every faith can be expressed in dignity and security.”
The silence of much of the mainstream media has also come under scrutiny. Critics suggest that while attacks on other faiths tend to draw swift coverage and political responses, incidents targeting Christians are often treated as isolated or minor. Yet the cumulative numbers, and the growing alarm among lawmakers, tell a different story—one of rising hostility that risks undermining both social harmony and France’s commitment to equal protection under the law.
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