Section VI: National Trends in Politics, Culture, and LawViolence, Threats of Violence, and Responses to ThreatsSeveral attacks that took place over the cour…
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Section VI: National Trends in Politics, Culture, and Law
Violence, Threats of Violence, and Responses to Threats
Several attacks that took place over the course of the year have political and religious implications.[1] Motives for these attacks can be complex and difficult to assess. Nevertheless, they are troubling for Christians and other people of faith, who seek to build a society in which persons can engage one another on difficult issues without resorting to violence. Demonization of others has become normalized amongst political leaders and media personalities. Some of these incidents express some antagonism towards the religious identity of the victims. Other events seem to be symptoms of the mental health crisis in the United States. In several cases, these incidents reveal a disturbing nihilism driven by internet memes and social media consumption.
While Catholic churches continue to face problems with vandalism and arson, two incidents at Catholic facilities stand out in particular. First, on August 27, a shooter fired on a Mass being held for the beginning of the school year at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The shooter fired into the windows from outside the building, killing two children and injuring thirty people, twenty-six children and four adults. While the fact that the shooter was a biological male who identified as female prompted speculation that the attack was motivated by animus over the Church’s teachings on human sexuality, investigation into the attack discerned no coherent motive.[2] A graduate of the school, he had written a manifesto and made videos and images expressing a mix of antisemitic, anti-Trump, racist, and anti-Catholic ideas, along with a strong desire to kill children.
In another incident, law enforcement officers removed a man who was armed with explosive devices from the front steps of the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, D.C., prior to the church’s annual Red Mass. This Mass marks the beginning of the Supreme Court’s term, and it has often been attended by Catholic justices. The man had a tent in front of the church and was asked to move. After police took him into custody, they discovered two hundred homemade incendiary devices in the tent. He had expressed anti-Catholic and antisemitic views, as well as hostility towards the Supreme Court justices.[3]
One act of political violence that took place in 2025 has had, and will likely continue to have, broad repercussions in American political and religious culture. A conservative activist, Charlie Kirk, was fatally shot during one of his signature campus debates. Kirk founded the organization Turning Point USA, and regularly held open-air debates on college campuses. Kirk was influential in conservative politics, and some reports suggest that the suspected killer may have targeted Kirk because of his views on sexuality and gender.[4] His evangelical Christianity was prominent in his work and his political views. At the time of this writing, no clear motive had been established for the killing. The murder has led to a new round of concerns about polarization and political violence.[5]
The year also saw a number of other religiously and politically inflected acts of violence. On April 13, just hours after the first night of Passover, an arsonist firebombed the home of Joshua Shapiro, governor of Pennsylvania. The suspect stated that he targeted Gov. Shapiro because of “what he wants to do to the Palestinian people.”[6] The next month, another horrific act of violence took place in Washington, D.C. On May 22, a young couple, who both worked at the Israeli Embassy, were killed as they were leaving an event at the Capital Jewish Museum. The suspect attempted to enter the event but was prevented by security. After his arrest, he is reported to have chanted “free, free Palestine.”[7]
On September 28, during a Sunday worship service, a man drove his truck into a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints chapel, opened fire on the congregants, and set the building on fire. The attack killed four people and injured eight. Reports surfaced that the suspect had animus toward LDS members following a break-up with his girlfriend. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has classified the crime as being motivated by anti-religious beliefs.[8]
Antisemitism
The promotion of religious liberty is bound up with opposition to antisemitism. The past two years have seen a disturbing rise in antisemitic acts and sentiments. To be sure, opposition to Israeli policies towards Palestinians or promotion of United States policies that prioritize American interests do not in themselves constitute antisemitism. However, much of the rhetoric surrounding Israel and the Jewish community in the past year went far beyond mere critique of policy.
A particularly concerning development has been the mainstreaming of antisemitic and neo-Nazi tropes among some conservative institutions and media figures. A major flashpoint took place in November, after the popular and influential pundit, Tucker Carlson, interviewed the young podcaster, Nick Fuentes. Like earlier generations of American entertainers, Fuentes has established his reputation, in part, by saying things most people find shocking, for example, claiming that the leader of Nazi Germany, Adolf Hitler, was “cool.” After the interview, Carlson faced the accusation that he did not sufficiently challenge Fuentes’s views. Following those accusations, the President of the Heritage Foundation, Kevin Roberts, released a video indicating his support for Carlson. These events served to put a spotlight on the mainstream conservative movement, with some reports indicating that as many as thirty percent of young Republican government staff workers are sympathetic to the views of Fuentes.[9]
Attacks on Catholic Services in the Media
One of the goals of religious liberty advocacy has long been to ensure that faith-based organizations can freely cooperate with governments in order to advance the common good. The Trump administration seems to acknowledge the good work that religious groups do in some of its executive orders (see Section IV of this report). However, that work is undermined when media figures and political leaders accuse religious organizations of acting in bad faith when they participate in public programs.
In February, Vice President JD Vance was asked in an interview about criticism the administration had received over its immigration policies. In his response to the question, Vice President Vance suggested that the U.S. Catholic bishops have served immigrants and refugees in order to profit from government grants.[10] In fact, Catholic charitable services to noncitizens generally operate at a loss. Archbishop Timothy Broglio, then-president of the United Stated Conference of Catholic Bishops, issued a statement rebutting the remark.[11] Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, called the remarks “scurrilous.”[12] The remarks followed a pattern that the Committee for Religious Liberty has identified in previous reports of media figures making false and misleading claims about the work of the bishops and other Catholic ministries. Kim Daniels, director of the Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life at Georgetown University, commented, “It all comes down to an old strategy: politicians targeting Catholics for political gain.”[13]
Christian Expression in the Federal Government
The Trump administration undertook a number of actions in 2025 to put religion at the center of public life, with a special focus on Christianity. In addition to the work of the Religions Liberty Commission, which has primarily highlighted issues affecting Christians, and the task force on anti-Christian bias, the administration developed an initiative called “America Prays” as part of its America 250 activities. The goal of America Prays is to encourage 1 million Americans to commit to praying 1 hour per week during the year-long celebration of the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the United States.[14]
The administration has taken other steps to indicate its support for public expressions of Christianity, including Catholicism President Trump issued messages for several Catholic feast days, including the Feast of St. Michael the Archangel and the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.[15] Executive agencies have also deployed Christian symbols on social media posts in w
