A Wake-Up Call for America: Defend Religious Liberty Before It Is Too Late

Catholics, Christians, all religions and those of no religion must unite to issue a clear, strong call for the defense and protection of our Constitutional religious liberty: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”  America has always been a nation in which all are guaranteed the protection of their God-given rights to religious liberty and freedom of conscience. Yet in these times, we are facing unprecedented challenges to our treasured right to religious freedom from our own government and from rising and aggressive atheism. This is a call to all Americans to stand together to defend religious freedom.

In a healthy culture, science and sociology cooperate with faith and religion to bring order and protect human rights. Government guards the natural rights granted by God: the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Our government has historically worked alongside religious organizations to serve the needs of the citizen, independently of one another but in harmony, in a unique system of cooperation and freedom that has served our country well since its founding. 


In stark contrast, China represents a chilling example of a repressive government that stifles religious freedom. The Chinese government believes that freedom is from the State, not from God. Religion, considered useful as “the opiate of the people,” is allowed to function only under governmental control, permitting limited freedom of worship while excluding religion and morals from the public square. The Chinese government does not permit the constraints of moral or natural law to interfere with national goals of accumulation of wealth and power, instead utilizing any means necessary to achieve these goals. Disregard for the environment, manipulation of the global economy, and exploitation of the worker: all are permissible under the banner of State Capitalism. Natural law is ignored as the government seeks to manipulate its own human population by means of their coercive and draconian one-child policy. In a country where the State reigns supreme, the government dictates every aspect of life and death.
 

In the United States, such human rights abuses have never been tolerated under our Constitution. American’s unique policy of freedom of religion and the free marketplace has positioned our country as a world leader.  Our prosperous economy, our military and moral strength, our leadership in innovation and ingenuity, all reflect the wisdom of our Founding Fathers in creating a government that respects and guards religious freedom and human rights.


Yet in recent years, there has been an alarming and parallel erosion of both our freedoms and our strengths. Changes which erode religious freedom have been introduced quietly, often without notice.  The most egregious example is the recent Mandate by the Department of Health and Human Services requiring all insurance plans to include free contraception, sterilization, and abortion-inducing drugs without a religious exemption for Catholic or Christian charitable agencies, hospitals, social service agencies, or individual employers or employees. This represents an unprecedented attack on religious liberty and freedom of conscience. In its attempt to reduce religious liberty to Sunday worship and remove rights of conscience from the Christian institutions, which have historically lived out their faith as active providers of valuable public services, the government is taking a step that will have serious repercussions for all of us, regardless of our religious views.


In response to these attacks on religious liberty, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops have issued a statement entitled, “Our First, Most Cherished Liberty,” outlining the reasons for their concern: * 


“We are Catholics. We are Americans…To be Catholic and American should mean not having to choose one over the other… That is the vision of our founding and our Constitution, which guarantees citizens of all religious faiths the right to contribute to our common life together….


“Religious liberty is not only about our ability to go to Mass on Sunday.... It is about whether we can make our contribution to the common good of all Americans. Can we do the good works our faith calls us to do, without having to compromise that very same faith?”


 “This is not a Catholic issue. This is not a Jewish issue. This is not an Orthodox, Mormon, or Muslim issue. It is an American issue… That is our American heritage, our most cherished freedom… If our obligations and duties to God are impeded, or even worse, contradicted by the government, then we can no longer claim to be a land of the free, and a beacon of hope for the world.”


What can you do as a Catholic, Protestant, Mormon, Jew or Muslim at this critical time? Let us not allow theological or philosophical differences to divide us. Join with us in the “Fortnight 4 Freedom” prayer campaign, beginning on June 19th and culminating on the 4th of July, and stand with us in defense of our most cherished freedoms.


Rev. Dr. Mac Culver                                   Msgr. D.P. Dillon, Chairman
Rev. Art Moore                                           Nancy M. Murray


*For the full statement “Our First, Most Cherished Liberty”
 & for more information about the prayer campaign, visit the USCCB website:


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