FBI Targeting “Traditional” Churches?

The Biden FBI – like the old Soviet state – is apparently considering surveilling US churches, beginning with the Catholic Church, to root out “domestic terrorists,” defined as dangerous “traditionalists.” This specter is genuinely frightening, anti-American, unconstitutional, and needs context and comment.

A memo written by a major FBI field office, which then oddly “disappeared,” makes clear the FBI has more on their mind than investigating China’s influence over this White House, raiding the former President’s home, and chasing parents for defending their children’s safety at school board meetings (task force still operating).

Now, Merrick Garland’s Justice Department, or FBI offices within his purview, are spinning the klieg lights on “traditional” churches. If this seems unthinkable, it should be. What he is doing is nothing less than religious discrimination of the worst sort, call it “religious profiling.”

Just as our 1^st Amendment protects non-violent speech by parents at school board meetings, non-violent protestors – including against abortion – it protects Americans’ right to worship without government intimidation, and without “religious profiling” or discrimination.

To violate that fundamental right – twisting traditional faiths into terrorism threats – goes beyond overreach or infringement. This represents a qualitative change in how our government has always behaved – and is allowed to behave. It would be a gross, deliberate violation of constitutional law.

Yes, the FBI memo has conveniently vanished, but offers cold comfort in an era hostile to those of religious faith, does not settle uneasy hearts. Those who believe in moral law – so-called “traditionalists” who subscribe to the Bible, liturgy, Torah, Talmud, Quran, Bhagavad Gita, or Tripitaka, are not terrorists.

They are what we call believers, and they center their life – more than anything – on the idea of love, forgiveness, mercy, peace, and the power of faith in a loving God. Even to infer that conservative, morally-centered beliefs pose a threat to this Republic – founded on those exact beliefs – is an abomination, so far out of line that it warrants serious investigation.

To have people in government thinking it is right to consider wielding the coercive power of this government against earnest, devout, worshiping Americans – even the hint – is itself criminal. And yet that is what we are witnessing, in this instance a memo suggesting that traditional Catholics are a threat.   

The mind boggles. Perhaps context will help. Whatever failings and differences we Americans have, political, ideological, or religious – roughly 240 million of us are people of faith, 3 percent Christians, another seven million Jews, three-and-a-half million each Muslims and Hindus, a million Buddhists.

Generally, those of faith are conservative. Put differently, only four percent of conservatives do not believe in God. But now comes an FBI targeting church-going “traditionalists,” first Catholics but surely the rest in time. 

Why? Because they tend to oppose reorienting education around transgenderism, oppose gender remaking, false teaching, confusion, gender mutilation and hormone therapy for kindergarteners, defaulting instead to biblical injunctions and biology, which hold the world is composed of male and female?

Because they oppose abortion, thinking it ends a young human life? Because they are not interested in their children being taught to be little activists, racist, Marxist, or anti-American? Because they are often faith and family centered, morally and politically conservative?

This is the nub of it – and warrants serious inquiry. The Justice Department and FBI have been twisted into political actors, which they never were. The twist is at the top, not mid or entry level, but what starts at the top often filters down, is at first objected to, then accepted for professional survival.

Bad enough is when other federal departments – Defense, State, and civilian federal agencies sworn to be non-partisan – become politicized, turned into ideological, political, or coercive actors. But when the Justice Department and subsidiary agencies allow themselves to go partisan, red lights should flash.

When those targeted for federal chilling, intimidation, and political confrontations, disingenuously dressed up as justified legal action, are just honest, God-fearing, family-loving, community-serving parents, students, and parishioners, something is badly wrong.

This FBI memo – in tandem with other actions by this Biden Justice Department taken to advance the leftist agenda, like placing conservative Supreme Court Justices at risk – should be a warning light. The Republic is strong, and our rights will remain inviolate, as long as we stand up for them. The minute we let them go and imagine the incremental incursion is not such a big deal is the minute they slip away.

Americans have an absolute, unbridgeable, non-negotiable, and yes, “traditional,” right to freely, publicly and privately worship, without government intrusion, coercion, chilling, intimidation, penetration, or surveillance. That is what 200 years of law – and the American heart – should tell us. How about we investigate the FBI’s political leadership and priorities, not churches.

Robert Charles is a former Assistant Secretary of State under Colin Powell, former Reagan and Bush 41 White House staffer, attorney, and naval intelligence officer (USNR). He wrote “Narcotics and Terrorism” (2003), “Eagles and Evergreens” (2018), and is National Spokesman for AMAC.