“The statue was later found on Thursday afternoon in a storage room next to a transformer, cut up into six different parts. Doris Wennerberg, the parish assistant at the Mary Magdalene Catholic Parish, said that she hoped the statue could be put back together and placed back where it had been stolen from….According to criminal and freight inspector at the Stockholm Police Jan-Åke Törnhage, thefts of bronze objects and statues are becoming more and more common across Sweden, with thieves likely looking to melt the statues down in order to sell the metal.”
But this statue wasn’t melted down. It was apparently abandoned, without any pieces missing, since the parish assistant hopes that it could be put back together.
Could the perpetrators have been people who believe that representational art is sinful in itself, and that the veneration of saints is idolatrous, and that “when you meet the unbelievers, strike the necks” (Qur’an 47:4)? Possibly. And possibly not. But how many incidents of this kind did Sweden experience before it had a large population of such people?
“Church desecrations and robberies have been a major issue in other European countries like France where an estimated three churches are attacked every day on average.”
Same question: France has had haters of the Church for centuries. Why is this happening only now?
“Sweden: Statue of Virgin Mary Stolen and Found Chopped Into Pieces,” by Chris Tomlinson, Breitbart, December 8, 2019:
A bronze 200-kilogram statue of the Virgin Mary has been found cut up into six pieces days after it was stolen from a Roman Catholic church in the city of Gothenburg.
The statue, which was around 1.75 metres (5’7″) in height, was stolen from the St. Mary Magdalene’s church in Hisingen, where it lay in a custom-built area outside of the church building, Goteborgs Posten reports.
The statue was later found on Thursday afternoon in a storage room next to a transformer, cut up into six different parts.
Doris Wennerberg, the parish assistant at the Mary Magdalene Catholic Parish, said that she hoped the statue could be put back together and placed back where it had been stolen from.
“We will review the security, it has been stolen once so there is a risk that it will be taken again and perhaps in an even worse way. It must be repaired and we must get a new safety device before we can set it up again,” she said.
According to criminal and freight inspector at the Stockholm Police Jan-Åke Törnhage, thefts of bronze objects and statues are becoming more and more common across Sweden, with thieves likely looking to melt the statues down in order to sell the metal….
Church desecrations and robberies have been a major issue in other European countries like France where an estimated three churches are attacked every day on average.
WPM says
As bad as this was it could just be common thief .If a Jihadist did this he would have left the statue cut up and smash beyond repair in public view to mock Christians as an Islamic statement.200K of bronze is over 400 pounds 5 foot 7inch statue not something you can carry thru the street to the local scrap dealer without getting noticed. Never mind the liability to keep the statue hold would draw too much attention to anyone buying or selling this art piece as scrap metal cutting it up selling one piece at a time is safer .
gravenimage says
What “common thief” would destroy a statue, WPM? They might steal it, but would not gratuitously destroy it.
WPM says
He could have destroy it so he could transport and sell it for scrap. A scrap dealer would have a lot of explaining to do if he bought a whole work of art but a “chunk” of bronze no problem. Also size and weight transporting to the scrapyard a 400 to 500 pound 5ft. 7 in statue moving off site .A Jihadist would like his vandalism to have full public view ,why would it be hidden in a storage shed (or very big locker) near by? Maybe to take one piece at a time to the scrap dealer. Could it have been jihad yes, but it could be common thief yes .The scrap value is over 10,000 in American dollars .
WPM says
Correction value close to 600 dollars at 1.50 a pound. It is a lot of work for 600 dollars worth of bronze to cut up to sell .
gravenimage says
I take your point, but there does not appear to be any indication that this statue had been sold for scrap.
Michael Copeland says
Theft of items in public spaces is an example of the destruction of trust.
This destruction is the predictable consequence of having large numbers of new arrivals from cultures very different, some quite hostile.
Of course, the thieves may have been homegrown ethnic Swedes, but the likelihood remains that they were probably non-Swedes from a foreign incompatible culture.
Agostino Armo Pellegrini says
A bronze 200-kilogram statue of the Virgin Mary has been found cut up into six pieces …
Let us be thankful it was only a statue. Too often it’s one of us non-muslims getting attacked and killed. And that’s typical of the “inspector” to deflect from the likely explanation of muslim bigotry as the cause onto to something else, like theft for profit. But as Spencer aptly noted, the statue wasn’t sold but abandoned. Muslims do crimes like this all the time, destroying the religious symbols of others. Faithful muslims are bigoted because their god is bigoted. Muslims are trapped by islam’s morally corrupt teachings and humanity has had to suffer for 1400 years because of it. Collectively speaking, muslims are centuries behind the West in regard to human rights and religious ethics. Of course there are many muslims who manage to be good despite the teachings of their religion, but they are not enough to stop the islamic onslaught against us Westerners. Muslims who destroy religious symbols of others are like adult babies to me, thinking the whole religious world must revolve around them. Nobody else can have a pathway to god, nobody else can be free to explore the world outside of islam. Nope, we must all live for a small-brained demon who used an illiterate robber to channel his morally retarded truths, what a sack of sh*t islam truly is.
To me destroying religious icons is a lot like burning books. Where those things are attacked and destroyed murder is close behind. And that couldn’t be more true than with islam.
mortimer says
Yes, but Roman Catholics believe in forgiveness, so there will be no mobs demanding the perpetrator be beheaded or crucified.
Agostino Armo Pellegrini says
Yes, but Roman Catholics believe in forgiveness, so there will be no mobs demanding the perpetrator be beheaded or crucified.~Mortimer
And that’s a distinction worth making. Catholics tend to be tolerant and forgiving while muslims are more into blind “submission” to a violent god and misogynist hate. Of course not all muslims fit into that mold, but collectively speaking, I believe I’m correct in my assessment. I was raised a Catholic, I feel lucky to have had parents who instilled in me Christian values rather than love for a demon. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t call myself a Christian anymore because I disagree with its theological underpinnings. But that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate Christianity’s good elements and its core message of divine love and forgiveness. But islam is a different matter completely, muslims bring religious madness to a whole new level. Can you imagine worshiping a god and “prophet” who acted like serial killers and bigots? Crazy, man. Islam is a case where millions of people try to turn something horribly profane into something sacred. But no matter how islam is packaged it will always be immoral and anti-human rights. I’m sure there are many “good” and decent muslims, but I also know they will be good for islam over our culture and laws when they hear the call. And that’s what scares me most, I think, because I know they will love islam more than my right to be free and safe from islam’s bigoted influence. It’s time the non-muslim world to be courageous for the truth and good morals against the insanity of islam. And if we don’t, we’ll have gotten what we deserve.
Istvan Vogel says
Imagine if someone cut up a Koran? That would really cause problems to those suffering from kuffarphobia!
Agostino Armo Pellegrini says
So true and a good point worth making. The leftist world would be up in arms over a destroyed koran, with accusations of increasing islamophobia and bigotry by us “right wing extremists.” The left is always catering to muslims’ hyper sensitivity, I suppose because they figure they’re too damn dumb to see reason. To Spencer’s credit he has always approached the problem with full respect for muslims, offering nothing but reasoned argument and due concern for human rights. It pains me a great deal to hear others use foul epithets against such a good man, it ain’t right. If he, Spencer, were truly bigoted I would be the first to condemn him. But I’ve never seen anything but the best intentions from him, grounded in reason and good argument. In his own way he’s a genius, I truly believe that, and courageous for the truth against religious violence and immorality. Such people deserve a Nobel Prize, not insults.
James Lincoln says
Agostino Armo Pellegrini says,
“To Spencer’s credit he has always approached the problem with full respect for muslims, offering nothing but reasoned argument and due concern for human rights.”
Absolutely true. He uses incredible restraint – and blows off some “steam” with nothing more than occasional sarcasm…
Anjuli Pandavar says
Those “bronze objects” that thieves seem to have developed a liking for lately, do they tend to consist of a short horizontal element joined at the middle with a longer vertical element?
mortimer says
Three churches vandalized every day at a huge cost too. That’s a lot of work done by the Islamic termites in France.
Would the Leftards call that vandalism ‘HATE CRIMES’ ???
Or would the Leftards say, ‘It isn’t a hate crime when Muslims do it’ ??
gravenimage says
Sweden: Statue of the Virgin Mary stolen and found chopped into pieces
…………
We are apt to see more and more of this–pious Muslims hate both Christianity and any figurative art.
Cece says
All the kings horses and all the kings men, couldn’t put Sweden together again.
Stella says
To be honest, we’ve had waves of copper thefts in Sweden for many years. Apparently it’s mainly been “non-Swedes” from poorer parts of Europe doing it. As bronze is mostly copper, I would surmise, based on the information in the article, that this is “normal criminality”. But that the thieves hadn’t planned their escape with the loot in sufficient detail. Putting it into a locked storage sounds as a second thought, as if they planned to come back later.
Mainly for technical reasons, but partly because of copper thefts (at least officially) there has been quite a grand scheme from the 1980’s on, to exchange copper cables for telecom with fiber. I was actually working at the Swedish telecom at the time and have some insight. There has been instances when parts of cables “disappeared” over night. But art and whole statues is not as common. Maybe they have run out of old cables by now and are diversifying their market model.
Giacomo Latta says
If it was destroyed for its copper content, there would have been no pieces of it to be found.
gravenimage says
Spot on, Giacomo.
OLD GUY says
How sad. The islamic can kill, hate speak, destroy anything christian. But if you speak out about Muhammad or islam they yell Islamophobe and go into a fit of rage. Personally I don’t believe Muhammad’s teaching or Islam. If you believe in islam I don’t care, that’s your choice. But when you kill, rape and use islam as an excuse for political power you are interfering in my freedom and choice. I will alway stand up against that!