The Church of the Immaculate Conception went up in flames Monday in yet another instance of a French church burning to the ground, leading to speculations on the origins of their destruction.
The church burnings highlight the tensions brewing in France’s secular and multicultural country, and its immigration policies have come under increased scrutiny. Weak church structures, bias against Christians and mass immigration have all been brought up as potential factors in the onslaught of church burnings.
A church burns down every two weeks in France, President of the French based Observatory of Religious Heritage Edouard de Lamaze told the French site 76actu in 2021.
Two-thirds of religious building fires, however, are caused by arson, Lamaze told the Catholic News Agency that same year. He stated that in France, one mosque is built every 15 days while “One Christian building is destroyed at the same pace.”
