Germany ahead of elections: Church warns against rise of far right
The elections for the federal parliaments of Saxony and Thuringia will be held this Sunday. According to a survey carried out on August 23 for the broadcaster ARD, The Alternative for Germany can count on the support of around 30 percent of Thuringian voters and thus has a chance of winning. In Saxony, on the other hand, there is a fierce battle between the CDU and the AfD. In both federal states, the left-wing Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) is in third place.
The president of the German episcopate warned on Wednesday against voting for the AfD in Sunday’s state elections. – This party wants to overthrow our democratic and libertarian system. I must warn Christians about this – said Bishop Baetzing to the Tagesspiegel newspaper.
Bishop Baetzing: Christians cannot vote for parties that undermine democracy
According to Bishop Baetzing, right-wing extremist parties like the AfD in Thuringia “cannot be elected by Christians”. – Anyone who analyses the public statements of AfD representatives and their programmes will come to the conclusion that they are contrary to basic Christian principles, human dignity and the commandment of Christian love for one’s neighbour and solidarity. – argued the priest.
Bishop Baetzing also criticized the left-wing Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance. He noted that the party “supports Russian President Vladimir Putin in a situation where Russia has invaded a sovereign country and has been at war for almost three years.” In his opinion, the BSW’s sympathies towards Russia “have no political authority and threaten the basic principles of democracy and international law, as well as the European peace order.”