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Thousands of Christians attend 'March for Life' in Germany and Switzerland

About 7,500 people met in Berlin, Germany, on Sept. 17 to express their support for policies that protect the life of the unborn. In Bern, Switzerland, about 1,700 gathered in front of the Swiss parliament at the Bundesplatz square to pray and listen to messages from pro-life leaders.

March for Life in Berlin. | Screen capture/Youtube/March of Life - Marsch des Lebens

The events were attended by Christians from diverse backgrounds. The march in Berlin was organized by the Federal Association for Right to Life. Martin Lohmann, president of Right to Life-Association, noted an increase in the march's attendance compared to last year. He also noted a stronger participation of bishops.

The bishops who were present at the event include Bishop Rudolf Voderholzer of Regensburg, Archbishop Heiner Koch, Auxiliary Bishops Matthias Heinrich of Berlin, Dominikus Schwaderlapp of Cologne and Florien Wörner of Augsburg. The march was also supported by the German Evangelical Alliance.

Earlier this month, the Protestant Church of Germany (Evangelische Kirche Berlin-Brandenburg-schlesische Oberlausitz or EKBO) discouraged its members from participating in the march. EKBO spokesman Christoph Heil cited the "differences of opinion" and the "aggressive manner" of the protestors as reasons why it refused to take part in the demonstration.

EKBO also advised members against attending the annual event in 2014.

About 1,500 people, including Berlin mayor Michael Müller, participated in a counter-demonstration. The pro-abortion groups reportedly used loud noises to disrupt a worship service. About 1,000 police officers were deployed to protect the march against disruptions.

Meanwhile, in Bern, the three main Swiss languages (German, Italian and French) were used to communicate a pro-life message to the participants. The event included live music, a prayer and several messages from Christian leaders and politicians.

Counter-demonstrators also attempted to disrupt the event in Bern. They allegedly used smoke flare and threw condoms at the participants.

The house of the president of the Swiss Evangelical Alliance was smeared by vandals the night before the march. Weeks ago, the buildings of the Evangelical People's Party (EVP) and an evangelical church were also vandalized with paint.