Attacks on St Stephen’s Cathedral and St Anthony’s Church must be condemned in the strongest possible terms

Attacks on St Stephen’s Cathedral and St Anthony’s Church must be condemned in the strongest possible terms. The desecration of a house of worship or the disruption of a sacred rite is fundamentally rooted in totalitarian and anti-tolerant thinking.

“Attacks on places of faith and prayer can and must never have a place in society. The actions of recent days are therefore to be sharply condemned,” said Philipp Jauernik, Federal Chairman of the Paneuropean Youth Austria. “It must be clear that those who commit such acts place themselves miles outside the basic social consensus. Religion must unite, not divide. The desecration of a house of worship or the disruption of a sacred rite is fundamentally rooted in totalitarian and anti-tolerant thinking – and must therefore be clearly rejected.”

Paneuropa understands Europe as an area of freedom, security, and justice. “This includes the fact that Christians in Vienna must be able to exercise their right to freedom of religion in safety,” Jauernik continued. He sees a “specific responsibility of the EU and all national and regional bodies to promote this fundamental freedom within and outside their territories”.