According to data from the ministry of the Interior of the German state of Baden-Württemberg, 849 incidents in chapels and churches were recorded across the state in 2024.

Those figures come from the ministry's response to an inquiry from the Free Democratic Party (FDP) parliamentary group, which, despite the damage, pointed out that the situation is “stable overall”, because “there are no indications of a general loss of social respect for religious symbols and cultural assets in the state”.

However, for Tim Kern, FDP's spokesperson for churches, “churches are not only sacred to many people, they are places of protection, peace, comfort and community. Vandalism in churches is therefore a double sacrilege”.

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Churches, chapels and more

According to statistics, 734 of the 849 recorded incidents were crimes against churches, while 115 were against chapels. Most of them were acts of vandalism or theft.

In addition to village chapels, town churches and monasteries, vicarages and church administrative offices were also affected.

Those data show that the number of cases in churches declined slightly, reaching the lowest figure in five years. The estimated financial damage is around €275,000. Moreover, a suspect was identified in just over a quarter of cases.

Meanwhile, offences in chapels increased by around 26% compared to the previous year, with one in six cases solved.

The number of reported cases in community centres, outdoor facilities and administrative offices also fell slightly to 189 in 2024, but the amount of damage increased to around €853,000, which is 20 times more than in the previous year.

Evangelicals and Catholics

Senior Church Councillor Christian Schuler, confirmed that the Protestant Regional Church in Württemberg has received fewer reports from its congregations, because “churches that are reliably open are usually assigned people to supervise them, and any churches are locked when no events are taking place”.

A spokesman for the Roman Catholic German Bishops' Conference, on the other hand, recently warned that “what is escalating is the quality of church vandalism. All taboos have now been broken”.

For Michael Hertl, spokesperson for the Archdiocese of Freiburg, “churches are sacred places, and burglars are often unaware of the spiritual impact their actions have. Churches should be and remain open places, if they now decide to close during the day or to secure themselves, this creates barriers that can be harmful”.

Security measures

In response to theft and vandalism, many churches in Baden-Württemberg now use technology to improve security, and work closely with the authorities.

In churches that are particularly at risk, secure storage facilities have been set up for valuable items, which aim “not only to limit material damage, but also to preserve the atmosphere of churches as places of worship”.