Religious Freedom: A Virginia Tradition Like No Other

It was on this day in 1786 that the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom was enacted. (Though not the only thing worth mentioning that happened this day in history.) It was this Virginia statute, authored by Thomas Jefferson, that became the basis of our First Amendment religious freedom protections (a fact that I and every other Virginian you will meet are very proud of).

The Commonwealth’s enactment provides, in pertinent part:

Be it enacted by the General Assembly, That no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief; but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinion in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish enlarge, or affect their civil capacities.

In celebration of this storied Virginia tradition of defending religious liberty, January 16th, is national Religious Freedom Day.  Like many of his predecessors before him, President Obama issued the obligatory proclamation.

But are we, as a nation in general and this Administration specifically, really protecting religious liberty?

President Obama’s proclamation explains:

In 1786, the Virginia General Assembly affirmed an ideal that has long been central to the American journey. The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, penned by Thomas Jefferson, declared religious liberty a natural right and any attempt to subvert it "a departure from the plan of the Holy Author of our religion, who being Lord both of body and mind, yet chose not to propagate it by coercions on either." The Statute inspired religious liberty protections in the First Amendment, which has stood for almost two and a quarter centuries.

Despite the fact that President Obama allocates far more space talking about those who have no faith (“America embraces people of all faiths and of no faith,” “atheists and agnostics,” “what binds us as one is not the tenets of our faiths,” etc.) than protecting religious liberty, the fact remains that this President is all talk and no action when it comes to protecting our First Freedom.

President Obama states:

America proudly stands with people of every nation who seek to think, believe, and practice their faiths as they choose. In the years to come, my Administration will remain committed to promoting religious freedom, both at home and across the globe. We urge every country to recognize religious freedom as both a universal right and a key to a stable, prosperous, and peaceful future.

Nice words on paper, but what are we doing?  Being “committed to promoting religious freedom” is judged by an administration’s actions, not its words.

Ironically, a White House blog post today celebrates one major law being used by the government to protect religious liberty, RUILPA.  What it fails to mention is RUILPA’s companion legislation, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act or RFRA.  (Without getting too far into the weeds, RUILPA or the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act was passed to supplement the protections in RFRA.)

RFRA, along with the First Amendment, is the main law being used to challenge the HHS Mandate.  It’s sadly ironic that the Obama White House would attempt to appear as a champion for religious freedom, as its lawyers are in courts all across the country and now at the Supreme Court arguing that that religious liberty protections found in our Constitution and RFRA don’t really mean what they say they mean.  Instead President Obama’s lawyers argue that forcing abortion pill coverage on someone doesn’t violate any real religious beliefs, and even it did, that abortion pill coverage is far more important than one’s faith.

That is not a commitment to religious liberty.  It’s a commitment to champion a radical pro-abortion agenda.

But it’s not just his Administration’s domestic trampling of religious freedom. When Egypt’s Christians were being increasingly persecuted, what did President Obama do?  He sided with the Muslim Brotherhood.  In Syria too his Administration sided with jihadists as Christian villages were attacked.

Where has this Administration been for a U.S. citizen – a pastor from Boise, Idaho – who is being tormented and imprisoned in Iran, not for breaking a law but for being a Christian and gathering with others to practice his faith?

Did the Obama Administration make him a priority when it sat across the table from Iran?  No.  Did it even mention Pastor Saeed in that discussion?   No.

It is going to have to be the American people (hopefully led by Virginians) who spur on a renewed vigor – true action – to protect and defend our First Freedom.

A version of this post is crossposted at RedState.com and ACLJ.org.

Сейчас уже никто не берёт классический кредит, приходя в отделение банка. Это уже в далёком прошлом. Одним из главных достижений прогресса является возможность получать кредиты онлайн, что очень удобно и практично, а также выгодно кредиторам, так как теперь они могут ссудить деньги даже тем, у кого рядом нет филиала их организации, но есть интернет. http://credit-n.ru/zaymyi.html - это один из сайтов, где заёмщики могут заполнить заявку на получение кредита или микрозайма онлайн. Посетите его и оцените удобство взаимодействия с банками и мфо через сеть.