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Jürgen Lohmayer advises on all questions relating to worldviews. Photo: Pat Christ
Photo: Pat Christ
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In our plural society we want to be tolerant towards others. But this tolerance has limits, says the Würzburg theologian Jrgen Lohmayer. Anti-Semitism is a crystal clear limit for him.
Lohmayer has a lot to do with this, because as the diocese’s worldview officer, he deals intensively with conspiracy theories in the course of criticism of the Corona policy. In his opinion, many of these theories have an anti-Semitic background.
There are theories that make you shake your head in amazement. Jürgen Lohmayer thinks, for example, of the QAnon movement, which is considered anti-Semitic: “The people concerned believe that there is an elite that sacrifices small children in order to obtain a substance from their blood that is supposed to keep them young.” of a QAnon fan. In the meantime, however, Lohmayer has advised several people from Lower Franconia whose family members have drifted into the scene of the Corona measures critics. In some cases with far-reaching consequences: “In one case, a family member even emigrated to Paraguay.”
Fallen in your own ignorance
The theologian explains that it is frightening for him how many people feel guilty about their own ignorance. A study that was published before the outbreak of the Corona crisis showed that around every second German citizen from the middle of society trusts his gut feeling more than experts. According to Lohmayer, these people can no longer be reached with arguments. He also had to say that to a wife who took his advice because her husband is one of those citizens who definitely do not want to be vaccinated. Quite a few families, according to Lohmayer, are deeply divided at the moment.
Opponents of the Corona policy usually do not let anything rob them of their convictions. This makes family members or close friends so helpless. Jürgen Lohmayer has advised on such a case almost a dozen times. This means that ten percent of the 120 inquiries about sects and beliefs in 2021 were about Corona. According to Lohmayer, the scene of those who do not agree with the political Corona course is very broad: “It ranges from esotericists to lateral thinkers and Reich citizens to Christians who walk with crosses.”
Now someone can have quirky views but otherwise be a nice person. A person with whom you can do beautiful things, disregarding your beliefs. So far, Jürgen Lohmayer has advised relatives of people who have fallen into sects to seek common ground despite everything and not to break the connection. The Corona policy makes this much more difficult. The theologian thinks of the wife, whose husband will not be vaccinated under any circumstances. Due to the access rules to restaurants and cultural institutions, she can hardly do anything with him at the moment.
word broken
The question is why the rate of critics is relatively high and seems to be increasing. Now, some of what demonstrators say cannot be dismissed out of hand. In a speech on November 18, 2020, Jens Spahn “gave his word” that there would be no compulsory vaccination. Prime Minister Michael Kretschmer had already tweeted on May 5, 2020: »No one in Germany is vaccinated against their will. The claim that those who do not get vaccinated lose their basic rights is absurd and malicious.« Lohmayer agrees that these promises have been broken: »The reason is that science has developed further.«
Corona critics say that you are experiencing the most amazing things right now. For example, how can the RKI halve the recovered status overnight? Their feelings tell them: Something is really rotten here. “Now you can’t possibly deny a person’s feelings,” emphasizes Lohmayer. As a worldview representative, he tries to identify biographical backgrounds for drifting into bizarre worlds of thought. In his experience, there is often a strong need for control. For this reason, those concerned looked for theories that provide clear explanations.
In general, sect followers are often personally in a critical phase. People join groups like “go & change”, a currently virulent sect in the Lower Franconian Steigerwald, because they have big problems in their own lives. In order to help these people, Jürgen Lohmayer, together with other worldview representatives, developed a »Spiritual Pharmacy«, which was published recently. Homeopathy and veganism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, reincarnation and “channeling” are explained here. The information is on the internet https://www.spirituelle-apotheke.de to find.
Precisely because the crisis management is progressing slowly, such offers are important, because face-to-face advice will probably not be available for a long time. However, because advice by telephone or email is very difficult for questions relating to alternative life concepts, Jürgen Lohmayer offers online conferences. Advice, he emphasizes, is always open-ended. And of course there is no evangelism, emphasizes the theologian.
PAT CHRIST