US bishops report flags 5 top areas of 'critical concern' on religious liberty

WASHINGTON (OSV News) -- A new annual report by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops identified what it called five areas of critical concern, defined as both threats and opportunities, for religious liberty.

"The State of Religious Liberty in the United States," published Jan. 16, highlighted the targeting of faith-based immigration services, elevated levels of antisemitic incidents, in vitro fertilization coverage mandates, the "scaling back of gender ideology in law," and promoting parental choice in education as areas of concern for the conference.

Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana, chairman of the USCCB's Committee for Religious Liberty, noted in the report's forward that the theme of the 2025 Jubilee Year underway is "Pilgrims of Hope."

"In calling for the celebration of this holy year, our Holy Father identifies two features of hope that must sustain us in our work to promote religious liberty: patience and stability," he said.

In 2025, "we anticipate that long-standing concerns will continue to require our vigilance, while new concerns, and perhaps opportunities, will also present themselves," Bishop Rhoades said.

Three days before the release of the report, the Texas Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case concerning Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's attempt to shut down El Paso's Annunciation House, a Catholic nonprofit serving migrants. The case is one of several instances of religious liberty challenges for Catholic ministries that serve migrants as part of their mission, especially those at the U.S.-Mexico border.

The USCCB report noted that immigration was a prominent issue in the 2024 presidential election, with President-elect Donald Trump's campaign relying "heavily on messaging about immigration."

"With the Republican Party finding electoral success with this kind of messaging, efforts to restrict the ability of Catholic ministries serving migrants will likely receive new momentum," the report said, expressing concern about a news report that the Trump administration would consider rescinding a policy against performing immigration enforcement raids in "sensitive locations," such as churches.

But threats to the church's service to migrants, the report said, is not "limited to legislation and executive action," and "the physical safety of staff, volunteers, and clients of Catholic ministries and institutions that serve newcomers may be jeopardized by extremists motivated by false and misleading claims made against the Church's ministries."

The report additionally notes that this year, "the role of Catholics in political life will continue to be a hotly debated subject in the national discourse."

"Vice President-elect J.D. Vance has spoken openly about his conversion to the Catholic faith, and he has said that his views are motivated by Catholic social teaching," the report stated. "In addition to the vice president, it appears there will be a significant Catholic presence in the Trump administration. Both supporters and opponents of the Trump administration can be expected to highlight the role of Catholicism in the administration, which may be a fresh source of partisan division among Catholics."

On IVF, the report noted that in reaction to a ruling by the Alabama Supreme Court found that frozen embryos qualify as children under the state law's wrongful death law, bipartisan interest has grown for "legally enshrining rights or promoting access to IVF or assisted reproductive technologies (ART) more broadly." Trump has pledged a nationwide IVF insurance coverage mandate.

IVF is a form of fertility treatment opposed by the Catholic Church on the grounds that it separates procreation from sexual intercourse and often involves the destruction of human embryos, among other concerns.

"It is unclear what kinds of exemptions for conscientious objectors the Trump administration will include in its plan," the report said. "While much remains unknown, IVF mandates could pose religious liberty problems, as well as life and dignity problems, in 2025."

Meanwhile, a still-pending ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court in United States v. Skrmetti, the Biden administration's challenge to a law in Tennessee restricting gender transition treatments, including puberty blockers, for minors, "could be catastrophic for religious liberty" if the court sides with the petitioners, the report said.

"Historically, in conflicts between religious liberty and gender ideology, religious liberty has generally had the advantage of being a right secured in the Constitution, whereas rights associated with the concept of gender identity have been creations of statute," the report stated. "A ruling against Tennessee in 'Skrmetti' could upend that dynamic by establishing a constitutional presumption that the teachings of the Catholic Church on this issue are bigoted."

"On the other hand, a favorable ruling could curtail some of the constant litigation religious groups have faced in recent years," it said.

The report also pointed to efforts to combat antisemitism, stating that a threat to one faith is a threat to all.

"Religious freedom is not simply a matter of government policy. It is also a matter of culture," the report said. "A political community does not have a culture of religious freedom when people are attacked for their faith."

The USCCB published its first annual religious liberty report in 2024.