Poland Monitors Christianophobia

Logo of Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw
The Polish government, together with the Aid to the Church in Need, has decided to open a unit specializing in the fight against anti-Christian ideologies at Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw.
The Catholic religion still remains deeply rooted on the banks of the Vistula. To the point where the repeated attacks against the Church are taken more and more seriously in Poland: “Christianophobia is already a reality in Europe, we do not want it to take root in our country,” warned Przemyslaw Czarnek, Minister of Education and Science on February 20, 2021.
The minister was speaking at Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw (UKSW) to mark the inauguration of the new religious freedom research center.
The main task of the new department, which will be headed by a priest, Fr. Waldemar Cislo, will be “to conduct research in the field of religious freedom and the phenomenon of Christianophobia.”
“Christianophobia is a phenomenon which is being increasingly observed in Europe,” specifies Fr. Cislo, who quotes the data published by the mainstream press: “in France, Le Figaro announced that the attacks against the places of worship of Judaism and Islam fell in the past year by 58.5%, while attacks on Christian places of worship have increased by 90%.”
The Polish research center, created with the support of the Aid to the Church in Need association, aims to develop partnerships with other central European countries, such as Austria or Hungary: “we have experience working with Hungary, with whom we share several scientific projects, as well as conferences on religious freedom,” explains Fr. Cislo.
Przemyslaw Czarnek, expressed his “great joy” on the occasion of the inauguration of the research center, and announced a public grant equivalent to € 335,000: “University research is crucial to safeguard the region from attacks on freedom religious, in particular against Christians, who are the most numerous in Poland,” explains the Minister.
As a sign of interest in the new institute, several UKSW students from African countries attended the ceremony. Fr. Ryszard Czekalski, Rector of the University of Warsaw, recalled how Africa is paying a heavy price for anti-Christian persecution.
According to a report presented by the Permanent Representative of the Holy See to the United Nations, approximately 170,000 people die each year as a result of the persecution of Christians for their faith.
Member of the ruling national-conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, Przemyslaw Czarnek is a leading figure in the fight against gender theory: his appointment, in October 2020, at the head of a new ministry combining the supervision of schools and universities, immediately sparked an outcry from progressive lobby groups in the country.
As soon as he entered the ministry, Przemyslaw Czarnek was quick to show color, assuring that he wanted to fight against the “totalitarian dictatorship of liberal left views” which, according to him, “dominates in universities and, more and more, in lower schools.”
Joining action to his words, one of the minister’s secretaries told the Catholic newspaper Nasz Dziennik that a revision of school textbooks would soon be started: with the stated objective of highlighting “the identity of Polish civilization in the context of Latin culture, because we are heirs to those who, illuminated by the Gospel, seek the truth.”
(Source : Notes From Poland – FSSPX.Actualités)
Illustration : Nasilowski, Domaine public, via Wikimedia Commons