The sneaky removal of a Spanish memorial honoring Saint John Paul II has triggered the outrage of Spanish Catholic organizations and media.

Erected in 1989 to commemorate the Polish Pontiff’s pilgrimage to the well-known sanctuary of Santiago de Compostela, it was removed in March of this year by the regional government of Galicia province purportedly for ”repairs and maintenance.” Only after several months did the authorities announce that the site would now become a grassy area.

Abogados Cristianos, a Christian lawyers’ association, has demanded the monument’s reinstatement and threatened legal action against those responsible for its removal.

The Spanish website Hispanidad said the incident was proof of ongoing “paganization” and blamed EU head Ursula von der Leyen, a nominal Christian, for “de-Christianizing Europe and persecuting Poland and Hungary, the EU’s last Christian strongholds.”