Family Research Council (FRC) has released the latest edition of its Hostility Against Churches report, documenting incidents of hostility toward U.S. churches during 2024. The annual report, first published in December 2022 with data going back to 2018, compiles cases such as vandalism, arson, bomb threats, gun-related incidents, and other crimes.
The report notes that the number of hostile acts against churches increased over recent years, with FRC identifying 50 incidents in 2018 and a peak of 485 in 2023. In 2024, the number of incidents leveled off at 415. This figure is nearly equal to the total from FRC’s initial report covering a much longer period—57 months.
California recorded the highest number of incidents in 2024 with 40 cases. Other states with significant numbers include Pennsylvania (29), Florida and New York (25 each), Texas (23), and Tennessee and Ohio (19 each.
Among the types of incidents reported for 2024 were 284 instances of vandalism, 55 arson cases, 14 bomb threats, and 47 categorized as “other.” Gun-related incidents rose sharply to 28 in 2024 compared to just 12 in the previous year. Thirteen cases fell into more than one category. Since January 2018, FRC has identified a total of 1,384 acts of hostility against U.S. churches.
Tony Perkins, President of Family Research Council and former chairman of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom under President Trump’s administration, stated:
“Religious freedom is seldom handed to the passive; it is claimed by those who exercise it even when a hostile culture says they may not. This report clearly shows religious freedom faces substantial threats here at home. The American woke Left has been intentional in spreading its hostility toward the Christian faith throughout every corner of America. We applaud the efforts of the Trump administration, but efforts must be taken at every level of government to protect and promote this fundamental human right. Christians must expect and demand more from their government leaders when it comes to prosecuting and preventing criminal acts targeting religious freedom.”
Arielle Del Turco, Director of FRC’s Center for Religious Liberty, commented:
“No instance of vandalism or other crimes against churches is acceptable, and political leaders should be quick to condemn such actions and affirm the importance of religious freedom. Religious freedom does not rely on legal protections alone, but also on cultural support. We must bolster cultural support for religious freedom and respect for our Christian heritage.”
Travis Weber, Vice President for Policy and Government Affairs at FRC added:
“The reality presented by this report may be surprising to many, as we are often accustomed to thinking of ‘the West’ as the place of freedom. Yet, my hope and prayer is that anyone who is a friend of freedom will observe the trend documented here and sit up and take notice. The fact that hundreds of churches around the United States are denigrated in this manner highlights the broader reality that Christians, Jews, and others are no longer ‘automatically’ safe to live and worship in peace in the United States — a trend that is at work in other Western countries as well. Government leaders should do their part in ensuring that our laws and constitutional protections for the free exercise of religion are enforced, and our culture and its institutions must do their part in ensuring honor and respect for religious freedom. Meanwhile, we must prepare ourselves for how to live amid such hostility, should this trend continue or perhaps get even worse.”
The full publication can be accessed at https://www.frc.org/HostilityAgainstChurches
