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Vandalism of Catholic churches: worse than reported
By Phil Lawler ( bio - articles - email ) | Sep 30, 2025
“Since May 28, 2020, there have been at least 528 attacks against Catholic churches in the United States,” according to statistics maintained by CatholicVote. Unfortunately, I am convinced that figure seriously understates the number of anti-Catholic incidents.
CatholicVote tracks the number of reported acts of arson and vandalism at Catholic churches in the US. Many—perhaps most—such acts are not reported.
At least in my experience, most pastors prefer to handle anti-Catholic attacks quietly, without involving the police or the media or even diocesan superiors. If the damage is minor—not enough to warrant an insurance claim—the parish repairs the damage without filing a report. The statue is repaired (or removed and replaced); the pews are refinished; the doors are repainted; the exterior walls are sand-blasted. The less known about the attack, the better, pastors reason.
What is gained, after all, by calling public attention to an ugly incident? Parishioners will be upset; some may even be frightened off. Contributions may decline; who wants to pay for the restoration of a statue that may be toppled again next week? Teenage vandals might revel in the publicity their deeds receive, and other miscreants might decide to imitate them.
”If you make a public issue of it, you just make your parish a target,” one priest explained to a parishioner, as he arranged for repairs to a statue that had been pulled off its pedestal—not for the first time—in the little garden outside the church. Right or wrong, that line of reasoning ensures that the number of such incidents will always be under-reported.
My guess—and it can only be a guess—is that the actual number of times a Catholic church has been vandalized since 2020 is easily double the figure provided by the CatholicVote tracker. In saying this, I do not mean to criticize CatholicVote, which is doing a valuable service by calling attention to the disturbing trend in anti-Catholic violence. On the contrary I mean to reinforce that message, because if the whole truth could be known, it would be even more dramatic.
Maybe I’m wrong; maybe my experience is atypical. I would be interested to hear from readers, and learn:
- Do you agree that the incidence of vandalism is seriously under-reported?
- If indeed pastors are keeping incidents quiet, do you think that response is right or wrong?
Phil Lawler has been a Catholic journalist for more than 30 years. He has edited several Catholic magazines and written eight books. Founder of Catholic World News, he is the news director and lead analyst at CatholicCulture.org. See full bio.
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Posted by: tc6683 -
Oct. 09, 2025 12:45 PM ET USA
I agree with these estimates, and have in more than one parish (3), heard the pastor decline to mention it lest it lead to political disagreements. Oh yes, also a visiting bishop.
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Posted by: mthpc2228945 -
Oct. 01, 2025 10:56 AM ET USA
My parish has had minor incidents (stuffing rolls of toilet paper and paoer towels in the toilets). I'm pretty sure those have not been reported.
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Posted by: ptylermiddleton7124 -
Sep. 30, 2025 10:44 PM ET USA
Yes, it is under-reported. Personally, I understand why a Pastor might not want to draw attention to his Church, but I think that is the wrong way to deal with the problem. I would give more credit to parishioners and expect them to offer to help either financially or assisting in protecting the Church and grounds.
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Posted by: grateful1 -
Sep. 30, 2025 6:22 PM ET USA
Vandalism & other crimes against churches are most definitely underreported, and a shepherd who refuses to report such hate-filled harms is derelict in his duty to protect the flock in his care and to exercise faithful stewardship of the resources that the flock entrusts to him in good faith. It is a perversion of Christ's teaching that we "turn the other cheek." Can you imagine a synagogue or a mosque reacting in this way? No way -- they bring down the hammer even on perceived slights.
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Posted by: fatheratchley -
Sep. 30, 2025 5:43 PM ET USA
Most definitely underreported. I'm a priest assigned to a downtown metropolitan parish, where almost daily either the homeless or ill-intentioned individuals foul the church bathrooms or grounds. Why report it when, even if perpetrators were known, there is no legal process to address ongoing low-level vandalism?
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Posted by: Crusader -
Sep. 30, 2025 5:01 PM ET USA
I hope this ties in with this article, but I have no where else to post it. In an article in your News section the USCCB says, "Due to the rise of extremist violence, Christians, Muslims, and other people of faith are increasingly targeted by campaigns of mass killings... " I must have missed something because I have not seen where Muslims have been the victims of mass killings for their faith. But, this goes hand in hand with the USCCB's release last week of their document on Islamaphobia.
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Posted by: feedback -
Sep. 30, 2025 1:58 PM ET USA
1. Vandalism of Catholic churches is definitely under-reported (as is the majority of crimes in general). Besides the stated above reasons that the pastors may have not to report those crimes, the Church has no political advantage in revealing them in the public forum. 2. In my opinion, responsible stewardship would require every incident to be scrupulously recorded, even if not publicized. Videos can help to solve many puzzles, and video cameras are getting really good, small, and affordable.
