In response to a new investigation that found increasing animosity and scorn for Christians in the United States, Christian leaders have expressed their reactions. The study found that vandalism and violent assaults had increased over the last several years.
The Family Research Council (FRC) monitored anti-church violence in the US for several years. Nearly 1,000 hostile incidents took place between 2018 and 2023. Some examples of these kinds of crimes include bomb threats, vandalism, arson, and crimes involving firearms.
During 2023, the Family Research Council recorded 436 instances, an increase of over 100% from 2022 and over 80% from 2018. The results show that anti-church sentiment in the US is multiplying.
The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan’s Purse president and CEO, Rev. Franklin Graham, said Christian tolerance has been eroded due to the pervasive influence of far-left ideology in popular culture.
His main point was that history demonstrates that the church is becoming more despised as socialism gains traction in the United States. Furthermore, he said that educational institutions are imparting anti-Christian and anti-God ideologies intending to advance socialism. Graham said that the American people must reject socialism in all its forms.
His unwavering devotion to Jesus Christ will not be impeded by socialism.
Evangelist and founder of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Hawaii and California, Pastor Greg Laurie, said that there was no denying the increasing anti-Christian sentiment on a global scale. The world’s most persecuted group is Christians.
Christians, paradoxically, have accomplished a great deal for humanity. Those who followed Jesus’s teachings founded most of the world’s prestigious educational institutions, hospitals, and aid agencies.
According to Pastor Jack Hibbs of Calvary Chapel in Chino Hills, California, pastors in the United States face persecution, which includes acts of intimidation, governmental surveillance, and attempts by political parties and activist organizations to censor the church. This is the kind of opposition that a strong church faces.
He thinks the churches will finally understand and reconnect with society because of the pressure they’re under.
Everything happening in our country right now encourages Hibbs for one reason. It’s a chance for the church to get up from its slumber and deal with the problems plaguing modern society, using the solutions God has already provided in the Bible, loving everyone, and leading them to know Jesus Christ and his grace for salvation.
