External links
- DOJ Inspector General Report (April 2024)
- House Judiciary Committee December 2023 Report
- House Judiciary Committee July 2025 Report
An internal Federal Bureau of Investigation intelligence product from January 2023 and leaked the following month identified "radical traditionalist Catholics" as potential domestic violent extremists, leading to a congressional investigation, a United States Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General review, and controversy over alleged religious profiling. [1] [2] [3]
Catholic organizations, including the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, condemned what they characterized as religious profiling while supporting legitimate counterterrorism efforts. [4] Republican lawmakers characterized the memo as evidence of FBI targeting of religious groups, while FBI Director Christopher A. Wray and Attorney General Merrick Garland stated the memo did not meet bureau standards and was immediately withdrawn. [1]
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), "radical traditionalist Catholics" are a subset who "may make up the largest single group of serious anti-Semites in America" and "subscribe to an ideology that is rejected by the Vatican and some 70 million mainstream American Catholics." [5] The SPLC distinguishes this group from mainstream traditionalist Catholics who prefer the Latin Mass. [5] Some Catholic bishops rejected the conflation of traditional liturgical preferences with extremism; Bishop Barry Knestout of Richmond stated that "a preference for traditional forms of worship and holding closely to the Church's teachings... does not equate with extremism," while noting that some of the groups named in the memo are not in full communion with the Church. [6] Cardinal Timothy Dolan, chairman of the USCCB's Committee for Religious Liberty, called the FBI's reliance on such sourcing "dubious." [7]
On January 23, 2023, the FBI Richmond Field Office produced an internal intelligence assessment titled "Interest of Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremists in Radical-Traditionalist Catholic Ideology Almost Certainly Presents New Mitigation Opportunities." [8] [9] The 11-page document had been first drafted by an analyst in late 2022 and anticipated potential threats from Catholic extremists and white nationalists leading up to the 2024 United States elections. [3]
The memo defined "radical traditionalist Catholics" (RTCs) as typically characterized by "rejection of the Second Vatican Council as a valid church council; disdain for most of the popes elected since Vatican II, particularly Pope Francis and Pope John Paul II; and frequent adherence to anti-Semitic, anti-immigrant, anti-LGBTQ, and white supremacist ideology." [10] The document distinguished this group from mainstream traditionalist Catholics who prefer the Traditional Latin Mass without extremist beliefs.
The memo was prompted by the FBI investigation of Xavier Lopez, arrested in November 2022 with Molotov cocktails, smoke bombs, and firearms components. [3] Lopez, who described himself online as a "radical traditional Catholic Clerical Fascist" and expressed neo-Nazi rhetoric, had been attending an SSPX-affiliated church in Virginia for approximately seven months. He pleaded guilty to federal weapons charges in March 2024. [3]
Former FBI Special Agent Kyle Seraphin leaked the memo to the public on February 8, 2023, through the website UncoverDC.com. [8] The FBI confirmed the memo's authenticity on February 9, 2023, stating it "does not meet the exacting standards of the FBI" and announced that headquarters had "quickly began taking action to remove the document from FBI systems." [6]
According to the Washington Times, FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate ordered permanent removal of the memo and all references from FBI systems on February 9–10, 2023—the same day it became public. [11]
FBI Director Christopher Wray said he was "aghast" when he learned of the memo. [12] Attorney General Merrick Garland called it "appalling" during March 1, 2023 Senate testimony, stating "our department protects all religions and all ideologies, it does not have any bias against any religion of any kind." [13] [14] Bishop Barry Knestout of the Diocese of Richmond issued a statement on February 13, 2023, calling the memo "troubling and offensive to all communities of faith" and noting that "a preference for traditional forms of worship and holding closely to the Church's teachings on marriage, family, human sexuality, and the dignity of the human person does not equate with extremism." [15]
On February 10, 2023, Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares led 19 other state attorneys general in sending a letter to Director Wray and Attorney General Garland stating that "anti-Catholic bigotry appears to be festering in the FBI, and the Bureau is treating Catholics as potential terrorists because of their beliefs." [16] Cardinal Timothy Dolan, chairman of the USCCB's Committee for Religious Liberty, condemned the memo on February 16, 2023, as "religious profiling" based on "dubious sourcing" while clarifying that "anyone who espouses racism or promotes violence is rejecting Catholic teaching." [4]
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan and Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government Chairman Mike Johnson launched an investigation in February 2023. [2] On April 10, 2023, after the FBI provided only 18 heavily redacted pages in response to initial requests, Jordan issued a subpoena to Director Wray compelling document production. [2]
According to the House Judiciary Committee report, Deputy Director Paul Abbate ordered permanent removal of the memo and all references from FBI systems on February 9–10, 2023, following its public leak. [8] [17] The FBI's Operational Technology Division was also directed to remove an Excel document listing users who had accessed the memo. [8] [17]
In January 2024, Senator Chuck Grassley and 15 Republican senators sent a letter to Director Wray questioning the decision to permanently delete files rather than simply remove the memo from distribution, raising concerns about compliance with federal document retention requirements and obstruction of congressional oversight. [17] Grassley stated: "The fact an FBI office produced even one discriminatory document like this—let alone two—is deeply troubling. It's unfathomable the agency's response has been to cut corners, dodge questions, and stiff-arm Congress." [17] According to the Washington Times, the FBI told Grassley's staff in August 2024 that deleted files could be recovered, but no such files were subsequently produced. [18]
The Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024, signed into law on December 22, 2023, mandated a 120-day review by DOJ Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz. [19] [3] The IG released his report on April 18, 2024. [20] [3]
The IG's 10-page report found no evidence of malicious intent or religious bias while documenting professional failures. [20] [3] Horowitz found "no evidence" that "anyone ordered or directed" the investigation of Catholics based on religion, and determined there was no "malicious intent" or "improper purpose" behind the memo. [20] [3] However, the report concluded the memo "failed to adhere to analytic tradecraft standards," "evinced errors in professional judgment," and "lacked sufficient evidence or articulable support" for the claimed relationship between RMVEs and radical traditional Catholic ideology. [20] [3]
The IG found that the memo "incorrectly conflated the subjects' religious views with their RMVE activities," creating "the appearance that the FBI had inappropriately considered religious beliefs and affiliation as a basis for conducting investigative activity." [20] [3] The report stated analysts "improperly conflated the religious beliefs of activists with the likelihood they would engage in domestic terrorism" and reflected "a lack of training and awareness" concerning proper domestic terrorism terminology. [20]
Regarding investigative techniques, the IG found that FBI Richmond used a confidential human source at the church and interviewed the priest and choir director "to obtain information about Defendant A and not to prepare the Richmond DP or collect intelligence more generally." [20] [ non-primary source needed ] Both analysts denied targeting anyone for practicing faith, with Analyst 1 stating accusations of anti-Catholic bias were "patently false" and the intent was "to promote outreach to Catholic Church...to protect that community from potentially violent actors." [20] [21]
Senator Grassley responded that "the most important part of this report is what's not in it, rather than what is." [21] [3] Catholic League President William Donohue called the IG report "overly vague, ambiguous, and littered with contradictions." [22]
The FBI implemented several policy changes in response to the controversy. In 2023, the bureau updated its policy and heightened the approval process for intelligence products implicating religious liberties, requiring critical examination of third-party sources for "access, reliability, bias, and other factors affecting the credibility of all sources cited in analytic products." [8] [ non-primary source needed ] Enhanced review protocols were established for "sensitive intelligence products," and approval requirements were changed for intelligence products discussing religious matters. [8] [ non-primary source needed ]
Under Director Patel in 2025, the FBI adjusted its "source recruitment structure" to prevent recruiting sources in houses of worship. [23] Patel stated: "We will not use sources at this FBI to investigate and cull information just for the sake of culling information in houses of worship." [23] The FBI made "adjustments and performed corrections" to source recruitment policies. [23]
According to the Washington Times , all employees involved in drafting, reviewing, and approving the memorandum were formally admonished under Director Wray, with admonishments placed in annual performance reviews affecting their compensation. [24] According to the Washington Times, no terminations occurred under Wray's leadership. [24] The FBI Inspection Division, which completed its internal review in April 2023, found employees violated both FBI standards and analytic tradecraft standards set by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, but determined they had not engaged in "intentional or bad faith conduct." [8] [24]
Director Wray testified multiple times that he was "aghast" upon learning of the memo and ordered it immediately withdrawn. [12] However, congressional investigators found the FBI's internal Inspection Division review was completed in April 2023—before Wray's July 12, 2023 testimony to Congress where he claimed the review was "ongoing" and refused to identify who authored and approved the memo. [8] [ non-primary source needed ] [25] Under Director Patel in 2025, there were "terminations" and "resignations" related to the memo, though specific numbers were not disclosed. [23] Special Agent in Charge Stanley Meador was placed on administrative leave. [23] Patel testified the FBI made "personnel changes" and committed to full cooperation with congressional oversight. [23]
On March 9, 2023, Special Agent in Charge Meador met with Catholic Diocese of Richmond leadership, including Bishop Knestout, the Vicar General, general counsel, and a Cardinal of the Catholic Church. [8] [ non-primary source needed ] Meador offered "an apology on behalf of the field office for the negative attention," though not an apology for the memo's content. [8] [ non-primary source needed ] No public apology was issued by FBI Headquarters or Director Wray. [8] [26]
Catholic organizations condemned the memo while supporting legitimate law enforcement efforts against actual extremism. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, through Cardinal Timothy Dolan, called for federal authorities to "take appropriate measures to ensure the problematic aspects of the memo do not recur." [4] The Catholic League, led by President Bill Donohue, wrote 10 news releases on the subject in 2023 and three in 2024. [27] Donohue stated in June 2025: "There is an anti-Catholic cell group in the FBI. It needs to be purged," claiming the Catholic League "did more to keep the pressure on the FBI than any other organization." [27]
Republican congressional members characterized the incident as FBI "weaponization" against Catholics and evidence of anti-Catholic bias in federal law enforcement. [26] Senator Josh Hawley confronted Wray in December 2023 testimony, asking: "Are Catholic churches breeding grounds for domestic terrorism?" and stating "you have mobilized your division, the most powerful law enforcement division in the world, against traditionalist Catholics." [28] Senator Ted Cruz and Senator Mike Lee also had exchanges with Wray during hearings. [28]
Democratic congressional members largely defended the FBI and characterized Republican concerns as politically motivated. [26] Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin stated during the December 5, 2023 hearing: "I'm troubled that the FBI is facing baseless claims that you have been weaponized for political purposes and dangerous calls to defund the agency." [26] Senator Laphonza Butler, former president of abortion advocacy group EMILY's List, focused questioning on threats against abortion clinics rather than the Catholic memo issue. [26] No Democratic congressional members joined calls for investigation or accountability beyond the initial condemnations by Attorney General Garland and Director Wray. [8]
The New York Times emphasized the Inspector General's "no bias found" conclusion, characterized the memo as focused on "self-identified Catholic extremists" rather than all Catholics, and presented it as part of broader Republican complaints about FBI "weaponization." [3] The Washington Times characterized it as the "anti-Catholic memo" showing FBI "targeting" Catholics, emphasized the "Biden-era FBI" framing, and highlighted cover-up allegations and contradictions in Wray's testimony. [18] Catholic News Agency provided detailed coverage, featuring statements from Catholic leaders while supporting law enforcement's role in combating actual extremism. [6]
