In the small village of Saint-Pantaly-d’Excideuil in the Dordogne, with a population of 146, a Calvary has displayed the tag “Islam” written with a black spray can along the cross since December 24. The perpetrators who defaced this Catholic oratory also made sure that a crescent, the emblem of the Muslim faithful, was depicted.
“It’s despicable, disgusting, childish … And it’s a reflection of today’s society. Everyone makes fun of everything. I pass over the sacrilege and will not participate in hate speech, but those who wrote this are idiots who do not respect the religion of our forefathers,” laments Quentin, the owner of the land on which this Calvary was built in the 1800s. (…)
The S.O.S. Calvaires association, which is recognised as a non-profit organisation, published a photo of Calvary on social media on Thursday after being alerted by a local resident who was “shocked” by the damage to a religious monument. Since then, more and more volunteers have been trickling in, offering to clean the image. We try not to report on such damage too often, because it might seem pathetic,” explains Alexandre Caillé, the general director of S.O.S Calvaires. But Calvaries are already suffering from the ravages of time and neglect, and it’s painful to see them being vandalised too. And this one has been “sprayed” with graffiti since December! In order to restore the Calvary without damaging the stone or the calcine, an expensive specialised material would have to be used. The association is considering taking on this task if the owner agrees. (…) Le Figaro