Attacks against churches up 730%, new report shows

A recent report shows that 415 attacks against Christian churches in the United States were recorded in 2024, representing a 730 percent increase from 2018. The report has resurfaced following this week’s tragic shooting at Annunciation Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

In an annual report titled “Hostility Against Churches in the United States,” the Family Research Council documented 415 “hostile incidents” against 383 churches in 43 different states during 2024.

According to Fox News, while the number of attacks against churches documented in the Family Research Council’s report decreased from the 485 incidents recorded in 2023, the report indicated that the total number of incidents “remains significantly higher than the yearly totals recorded in 2018 through 2022.” 

Fox News reported that the Family Research Council has documented 1,384 hostile acts against churches from January of 2018 to December of 2024. The Family Research Council noted that the total number of attacks against Christian churches is likely higher than the number included in the report due to some hostile acts not being reported to law enforcement officials or shared by the news media. 

The attacks against U.S. churches in 2024 included 284 acts of vandalism, 55 arson incidents, 28 gun-related incidents, 14 bomb threats, and 47 incidents classified as “other.”

The Family Research Council’s report noted that with Christianity appearing to lose “influence and respect” in the United States and fewer people having spiritual and emotional connections to churches, “there may be less societal pressure to discourage would-be criminals from targeting churches.”

President Donald Trump issued an executive order in February that established a task force to investigate any government discrimination against Christians. Addressing the president’s executive order, the Family Research Council’s report stated, “The existence of such an order shows that even the federal government has taken notice of the growing trend of hostility against U.S. churches.”

In a statement obtained by Fox News, Family Research Council President Tony Perkins said, “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,” Perkins added. “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.”