Over 400 acts of hostility against US churches in 2024; gun-related incidents more than doubled: report
August 11, 2025
A new report from the Family Research Council says more than 400 acts of hostility against churches were record in 2024, including a sharp rise in gun-related incidents.
The Christian Post reports that the “Hostility against Churches in the United States” was released on Monday, highlighted incidents ranging from vandalism and arson to gun-related threats, bomb hoaxes and physical assaults.
415 hostile acts were recorded across 43 states and affecting 383 churches, based on open-source documents, media reports and official records.by the Washington-based Christian advocacy group.
The total for 2024 was slightly lower than the 485 incidents recorded in 2023 but still remained well above the yearly totals for 2018 through 2022. The organization has tracked more than 1,384 incidents since January 2018.
The report states: “”Although the motivations for many of these incidents remain unknown, the rise in crimes against churches is taking place in a context in which fewer Americans are attending religious services or identifying with a specific faith.”
According to the Christian Post, Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, who served as chairman of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom during President Trump’s first term, said the report shows “religious freedom faces substantial threats here at home.”
Less than a third of Americans regularly attends church services, according to data from Gallup, and researchers say “fewer Americans share a common understanding of what church buildings represent.”
The Family Research Council report states, “It is important to note that not all crimes against churches are motivated by hatred for Christianity. Some vandals appear to be motivated by financial gain through theft, while other culprits are teenagers engaging in a destructive pastime.”
“However, there are still incidents that seem to be targeting church intentionally and with malicious intent. Regardless of the perpetrator’s motives, such crimes can leave churches in physical, financial, and emotional disarray,” the report says.
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