SOUTH BEND – U.S. Attorney General William Barr on Friday decried what he saw as a concerted attack on religious freedom perpetrated by state governments that use laws as a "battering ram to establish moral relativism."   

In a 37-minute speech at the University of Notre Dame’s law school, Barr did not take questions from the media, which was escorted out of the room during a discussion period, but spoke passionately about “consequences of moral chaos” and the infringement of rights for organized religions and those of religious faith.

“Ground zero for these attacks on religion are the schools,” Barr said. “To me this is the most serious challenge to religious liberty today.”

When the “passing on of the faith” by parents to their children is impeded by the government, a “monstrous invasion of religious liberty” results, Barr said.  

Confirmed to his post in February, Barr also referenced a recent lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Indianapolis regarding the rights of teachers in same-sex marriages to work in Catholic schools.

“This lawsuit clearly infringes on the First Amendment rights of the archdiocese by interfering both with its expressive association and with its church autonomy,” Barr said. “The Department of Justice filed a statement of interest in the state court making these points and we hope that the state court will soon dismiss this case.”

Tracing the arc of religious liberty back to the founding fathers, Barr also claimed that "over the past 50 years, religion has been under increasing attack" in the U.S. 

Barr cited the rate of American children born out of wedlock as having increased five-fold since 1965 to a national average of 40 percent. He said that figure climbs “well over 70 percent in many large urban areas" and suggested a decline in morality was responsible.