The Office for the Protection of the Constitution warns: extremist communities are the focus of the investigation

The Office for the Protection of the Constitution warns: extremist communities are the focus of the investigation

In the current reporting by the Baden-Württemberg Office for the Protection of the Constitution, two Christian communities are in particular focus: the “Evangelische Freikirche Riedlingen” in the Biberach district and the “Baptist Church Reliable Word” in Pforzheim. Both communities face serious allegations of extremist views and actions. According to the Evangelical newspaper they have remained under close observation for some time.

The “Reliable Word Baptist Church” has been in the sights of the security authorities since spring 2023. Massive queer hostility as well as anti-Semitic, misogynistic and anti-democratic statements are criticized here. The doctrine states, for example: “We believe that homosexuality is a sin and a disgrace that God punishes with the death penalty.” Such positions have already led to investigations into sedition. As part of the observations, the community's premises in Pforzheim were also searched, which underlines the seriousness of the allegations. The preachers responsible have not yet distanced themselves from their extremist rhetoric, as has been the case Reporting from evangelisch.de clarified.

The Evangelical Free Church of Riedlingen

But the “Evangelische Freikirche Riedlingen” also raises concerns. This community has been under observation since May 2022 because its preacher Jakob Tscharntke spreads extremist conspiracy ideologies and takes a negative attitude towards state institutions. With its own YouTube channel, this congregation's sermons have a wide reach and often contain statements that disdain or demonize politicians. There are currently internal conflicts in the community because some of the members no longer want to see themselves under Tscharntke's leadership.

Jakob Tscharntke, a former pastor of the Evangelical Church in Württemberg, avoids any opportunity to spread his extremist views. Pastor Andreas Oelze, the ideological representative of the Evangelical Regional Church in Württemberg, describes both communities as extreme cases that are not representative of the large number of free churches. The Riedlingen community in particular has an affinity for conservative Christians, which causes further concern.

Radicalization and isolation

In his analyses, Oelze emphasizes that Tscharntke's radicalization was strongly influenced by the influx of refugees in 2015/2016 and during the corona pandemic. This is a sign that social upheavals can also promote radicalization processes. The “Reliable Word Baptist Church” also appears to be isolated within the German fundamentalist spectrum and has no connections to the established Baptist congregations in the Federation of Evangelical Free Churches (BEFG). The federal government had already undertaken this distancing before the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution observed it Federal Agency for Civic Education documented.

In summary, it can be seen that both the “Reliable Word Baptist Church” and the “Evangelische Freikirche Riedlingen” are viewed by the public as extremely special cases. This illustrates how important the continuous monitoring of such trends by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution is in order to protect the basic democratic order.