A livestreamed video showed a group of activists marching into Cities Church in St. Paul during a Sunday service on January 18, 2026, forcing worship to stop and leaving congregants shaken. The episode was not a peaceful demonstration — it was an invasion of sacred space in the name of politics, and Americans who still care about the rule of law should be outraged.
The Department of Justice has opened an investigation into the disruption, and senior Justice officials have publicly warned that federal statutes protecting houses of worship are on the table. This is the right response: religious practice cannot be allowed to be treated as a bargaining chip for the mob.
Protesters chanted “ICE out” and “Justice for Renee Good,” tying their theatrics to an earlier shooting that involved federal agents — a tragic event that stokes real anger but does not justify desecrating a sanctuary. Responsible conservatives demand accountability for the shooting where warranted, but we also insist that grief and anger never become an excuse to terrorize families and children in church.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and other officials have signaled arrests are imminent, and law-enforcement spokespeople have vowed to hold the perpetrators to account for interrupting worship. Good — the optics of the state tolerating this kind of lawlessness would be catastrophic and would only serve to embolden further attacks on religious freedom.
Church leaders and broader religious organizations rightly condemned the stunt, saying worshippers — including children — were frightened and forced to abandon their service. Southern Baptist and other faith leaders pledged to protect houses of worship from what they called “lawless harassment,” and Americans who cherish religious liberty should stand with them.
Let’s be blunt: this was performative outrage from activists who believe the rules don’t apply to them. The right answer is not to excuse or rationalize their behavior because of political sympathy; it is to prosecute when laws are broken and to make clear that the left’s latest tactic — turning churches into protest stages — will not stand in a free society.
Patriots who care about faith, family, and order should demand swift and transparent prosecutions, and they should pressure elected officials to protect worshippers, not embellish the mob. Our nation’s churches are sanctuaries of hope and charity, not targets for political spectacle, and anyone who thinks otherwise should face the consequences.
