The Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Community (COMECE) has called on the European Union (EU) to appoint a coordinator for the fight against anti-Christian hatred in the same way it already employs coordinators to combat hate directed against Jews and Muslims.
“The time is mature for the appointment of an EU coordinator on combating anti-Christian hatred in Europe,” said Alessandro Calcagno, an adviser to the bishops on fundamental rights, during his speech at the European Prayer Breakfast held at the European Parliament last week.
“It is not a question of victimism but equal access to tools of protection,” Calcagno said.
COMECE is the body that officially represents the Catholic Church to the EU.
Calcagno explained that the right to freedom of religion, as well as provisions to fight against discrimination on the grounds of religion, should not be seen only through the prism of protecting faith communities that are religious minorities.
“It is necessary to break the ‘majorities vs. minorities’ dynamic that underpins the approach of certain actors and policymakers,” Calcagno stated.
Appointing a coordinator is one of the priorities that Calcagno, on behalf of the European bishops, outlined in relation to the exercise of religious freedom in the EU, among which is “need to ensure equal protection to all dimensions of this core fundamental right, including the institutional one,” he highlighted.
“Too often, freedom of religion is depicted as a ‘problematic’ right, and its collective dimension, compared with its individual dimension, is neglected,” the adviser said.
The need to protect places of worship and data of a religious nature as well as better integrate the defense of religious freedom into EU policies was also addressed during the event.
The European Prayer Breakfast, attended by some 450 participants from across the continent and beyond, was held in conjunction with a panel focused on current trends of rising religious intolerance in Europe.
