Just a few days after the major clean-up operation in Puchenau (Upper Austria), four of the 14 martyrs of the Stations of the Cross, which were built 103 years ago, were severely damaged. The crosses of the three-meter-high monuments were toppled. A symbol of Christianity was turned over and placed in a niche of the martenl.
Vandals repeatedly raged in Puchenau. In recent years, the railing of a pedestrian bridge has been demolished and a fire has been set in the youth center. “That was already bad: but now a moral low has been reached,” says Anton Grottenthaler, chairman of the beautification association, devastated.
“In four of the fourteen tortures on the more than 100-year-old Way of the Cross from the city center to the Pöstlingberg, the cross was cut off. An information board of our club was also destroyed,” says the 77-year-old.
Two symbols of Christianity have ended up in the bushes, one is missing. The fourth cross that was cut off makes Grottenthaler particularly thoughtful. It was turned over and placed in a niche of the monument. This is generally considered a sign of Satanism.
“We cleaned the Marterl just a few days before it was destroyed. Four members of our association spent a whole day removing moss and algae from the approximately three-meter-high monuments,” says the chairman of Puchenau’s largest association with a total of 838 members.
The old chairman, who is now thinking out loud about transferring his office after 23 years, already has concrete suspicions. “There have been several young people hanging around outside the supermarket for a while now. They are not from the city and we do not know them. They may also have shoplifted. On the day the Marterls were destroyed, they were seen by a witness near the Stations of the Cross. They have not been seen in the city since the vandalism.” A report has been filed with the police.
Source: Krone
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