Acts of hostility against U.S. churches more than doubled in 2023, underscoring a trend that has intensified over the past six years, as per a report released Tuesday by the Family Research Council (FRC).
The FRC documented a minimum of 436 acts of hostility across 48 states and Washington, D.C., from January to November of last year. This figure starkly contrasts with the fewer than 200 incidents recorded in 2022, according to the annual report titled “Hostility Against Churches.”
Tony Perkins, President of the FRC, remarked in the release, “There is a common connection between the growing religious persecution abroad and the rapidly increasing hostility toward churches here at home: our government’s policies.” He added, “The indifference abroad to the fundamental freedom of religion is rivaled only by the increasing antagonism toward the moral absolutes taught by Bible-believing churches here in the U.S., which is fomenting this environment of hostility toward churches.”
In 2023, California reported the highest number of incidents with 33, followed by Texas with 28. Conversely, Hawaii and Wyoming recorded no such incidents.
Since 2018, the FRC has identified 915 acts of hostility against U.S. churches, marking the first year of data collection.
The majority of incidents in 2023 manifested as vandalism (315), followed by arson (75), which also included 20 bomb threats. Regardless of the type or motivation of the incident, Arielle Del Turco, Director of the Center for Religious Liberty at FRC and author of the report, emphasized that the impact is one of “religious intimidation.”
