{"id":36159,"date":"2026-06-14T10:03:14","date_gmt":"2026-06-14T10:03:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/36159\/"},"modified":"2026-06-14T10:03:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-14T10:03:14","slug":"germanys-domestic-intelligence-agency-christian-influencers-linked-to-afd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/germany\/36159\/","title":{"rendered":"Germany’s Domestic Intelligence Agency: Christian Influencers Linked to AfD"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution keeps an eye on individuals and groups who seek to spread extremist ideology under a Christian-religious veneer. As the government explains in a response to a parliamentary inquiry by the Greens, these actors \u201cin the course of their agitation adopt (pseudo-)Christian motives and discourses\u201d and adapt them \u201cto ideologically underpin expressions or behaviors directed at certain social groups, as well as, in parts, extremist conspiracy theories.\u201d In this sense, their actions are aimed at the liberal-democratic basic order.<\/p>\n

Some of these actors are active on social media as influencers. In the government\u2019s response, it states that within this circle there are \u201ccontacts and networking efforts in political milieus at home and abroad, such as toward members of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.\u201d<\/p>\n

Green Party politician sees no problem with the major churches \u2014 on the contrary<\/p>\n

Right-wing extremists used religiously charged imagery and narratives to attract especially young people, as the government has now confirmed, says Green Party interior policy spokeswoman Marlene Sch\u00f6nberger. \u201cSo-called Christfluencers with ties to the AfD and the MAGA movement merge right-wing extremist ideology, Christian-symbolic imagery, and conspiracy theories.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lamya Kaddor, the Greens\u2019 parliamentary commissioner for religious policy, says that in light of the close cooperation with the major churches, it is clear to her: \u201cThe federal government must devote more attention to the instrumentalization of Christian symbolism and narratives by right-wing extremists.\u201d<\/p>\n

Greens point to the \u201cReliable Word\u201d Baptist Church<\/p>\n

\u201cMedia reports show that isolated groups, individuals, networks, and online actors with broad reach, some publications described as Christian-fundamentalist, spread right-conservative to far-right, anti-LGBTQ, antifeminist, racist, antisemitic, and anti-democratic positions, referencing Christianity,\u201d according to the Greens\u2019 parliamentary inquiry (PDF).<\/p>\n

As an example, the \u201cReliable Word\u201d Baptist Church in Pforzheim was cited, which is monitored by the Baden-W\u00fcrttemberg State Office for the Protection of the Constitution. Its pastor Andy Shamoon publicly stated that homosexuals \u201cdeserved death,\u201d and they \u201cshould actually be eradicated by the state somehow\u201d (TheColu.mn reported). Shamoon was legally convicted of incitement to hatred and sentenced to a fine (TheColu.mn reported). (mize)<\/p>\n

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