Barbara, Freedom - and why the AfD should not try to claim her for itself

The AfD Gauersheim is inviting people to a “Barbara Coffee” event and wants to provide information about Saint Barbara. Of all parties, it is one whose worldview stands in direct contradiction to the figure it now wants to present ceremonially. Because Barbara is not just a friendly Advent symbol, as she occasionally appears, but a figure whose story reveals a clear stance on power, freedom, and human dignity.

She was a young woman who encountered a new religion - a teaching that came from abroad and slowly spread in her homeland. Her father and the self-appointed protectors of the homeland responded with contempt. For them, any change was a threat, any openness a sign of weakness. But Barbara saw something different in the new message: the unconditional dignity of every human being, the strength of compassion, the prospect of a faith that does not enslave but liberates. Despite threats, she allowed herself to be baptized, even though she was imprisoned and knew her step was dangerous. Her father and his followers responded to her courage with violence - ultimately with death. Gauersheim

This is precisely why Barbara, theologically and historically, stands for the opposite of the ideology that the AfD represents in parts. She embodies strength of conscience instead of submission, freedom instead of isolation, human dignity instead of devaluation. Her life tells of an attitude that sees power not as a means of intimidation but as a responsibility toward the weaker. Barbara broke through walls - both spiritual and literal - while far-right movements build political fences and turn fear into a guiding principle.

When the AfD tries to use such a figure for its purposes, an image emerges that is unintentionally revealing. It is as if a dragon were offering a seminar on firefighting. The roles do not fit together, and anyone who forces them together only makes the contradictions more visible.

A “Barbara Evening” worthy of the name would have to tell this story in full. It would have to acknowledge what Barbara stands for and what consequence that would have for a movement that elevates harshness to a guiding principle. Taken seriously, the only logical conclusion would be a joint decision to dissolve itself. At the end, there is a note to the people in the region: Whoever places a Barbara branch in water sets a sign for hope, for renewal, and for a democracy that remains open, alert, and resilient. Barbara reminds us that strength arises from freedom - not from fear.