What The Catholic Church Says About Religious Liberty
From the USCCB...
On December 7, 1965, the Second Vatican Council approved Dignitatis humanae, the Declaration on Religious Liberty. The document roots religious freedom in the perennial teaching of the Church on human dignity. It teaches that religious freedom is the cornerstone of a society that promotes human dignity; it is a fundamental human right, which follows on the duty of all people to seek the truth about God.
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The Declaration addresses a question that comes up in every generation: how do we understand freedom, truth, and the relationship between church and state?
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Religious freedom includes two important aspects - freedom from and freedom for. "Freedom from" is probably familiar and what most of us think of as freedom. It means that we are to be free from coercion. The state is not an all-powerful institution that can force people to act against their consciences.
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The right to be free from coercion limits the power of the state. But this freedom must be paired with a "freedom for," a positive orientation to seeking and acting in accordance with the truth. People have both a right and a duty to seek religious truth. Freedom from coercion allows the space for the pursuit of religious truth. Religious freedom requires that a society both refrain from preventing people from living out their religion and help to create the conditions for religious expression to flourish. A free society, then, is one where people actively seek religious truth and fully live out that truth in public and private. As Pope Francis said in Cuba, the Church must have "the freedom and all the means needed to bring the proclamation of the Kingdom to the existential peripheries of society."
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Religious freedom is the cornerstone of a society that promotes human dignity. It is a fundamental human right, for it follows on the duty of all people to seek the truth about God.
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​What the Catechism of the Catholic Church Says...
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"Nobody may be forced to act against his convictions, nor is anyone to be restrained from acting in accordance with his conscience in religious matters in private or in public, alone or in association with others, within due limits." This right is based on the very nature of the human person, whose dignity enables him freely to assent to the divine truth which transcends the temporal order. For this reason it "continues to exist even in those who do not live up to their obligation of seeking the truth and adhering to it." (#2106) Read more about what the Catechism says here. (#2104-#2109)
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For more information on where the Catholic Church stands on the importance of Religious Liberty consider reading the following Papal Encyclicals....
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Pope Leo XIII
Pope St. John Paul II
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Where The Republican Candidates Stand
"Our Founders understood that no right is more fundamental to a peaceful, prosperous, and virtuous society than the right to follow one’s religious convictions."
~President Donald J. Trump
On February 22, former President Donald Trump delivered a 75-minute speech at the National Religious Broadcasters Convention, an event billed as the world’s “largest gathering of Christian communicators.” During the speech, Trump promised to “aggressively defend” religious liberty if he is reelected as president.
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This statement did not come as a surprise because, as the 45th president of the United States, President Donald Trump not only appointed Supreme Court judges dedicated to upholding the U.S. Constitution and the rule of law, he also prioritized religious liberty as one of the administration's most paramount issues.
In February 2017, Trump said his administration would “totally destroy” the Johnson Amendment, a 1954 law that prohibits churches from endorsing or opposing political candidates at the risk of losing their tax-exempt status.
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On May 4, 2017, President Trump signed Executive Order #13798 upholding religious liberty and the right to engage in religious speech.
In May of 2018, President Trump then signed an executive order creating the White House Faith and Opportunity Initiative, with the goal of ensuring that faith-based and community organizations, which form the bedrock of our society, have strong advocates in the White House and throughout the Federal Government. This hasn’t just been lip service. Throughout the federal government, agencies have enacted policies and litigation strategies to protect religious freedom.
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In 2019, President Trump hosted a Global Call to Protect Religious Freedom event at the United Nations and called on the international community and business leaders to work to protect religious freedom around the world.
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On January 16, 2020, before leaving the white house, the Trump Administration once again took action to safeguard students’ constitutionally protected right to pray in school. To receive Federal funds, local educational agencies must confirm that their policies do not prevent or interfere with the constitutionally-protected rights outlined in the guidance.
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The Administration issued nine proposed rules to protect religious organizations from unfair and unequal treatment by the Federal government. The proposed rules sought to eliminate burdensome Obama-era requirements that unfairly imposed unique regulatory burdens only on religious organizations. Some of the other most notable efforts toward protecting Americans' religious liberty include:
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The President took action to ensure Americans and organizations are not forced to violate their religious or moral beliefs by complying with Obamacare’s contraceptive mandate.
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The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) established a new Conscience and Religious Freedom division to help direct the agency’s efforts to protect religious freedom.
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HHS took action to protect the right of healthcare entities to act according to their conscience.
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This year, the Administration finalized a rule providing more flexibility for Federal employees whose religious beliefs require them to abstain from work on certain days.
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The Administration has unequivocally stood for religious freedom in the courts.
Where The Democratic Candidates Stand
In 2014, Harris was one of 14 state attorneys general to file an amicus brief with the Supreme Court that asked the court to force Hobby Lobby to cover contraception — which included potentially abortifacient drugs — in its health-insurance policies despite the ownership’s religious opposition.
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As a senator, Kamala Harris, scrutinized three judicial nominees (Brian Buescher, Paul Matey, and Peter Phipps) about their affiliations with the Catholic fraternal organization, the Knights of Columbus. For example, she asked Buescher whether he knew “that the Knights of Columbus opposed a woman’s right to choose when [he] joined the organization.” She questioned whether he agreed with then-Supreme Knight Carl Anderson that abortion is “the killing of the innocent on a massive scale.” She asked him whether he knew “that the Knights of Columbus opposed marriage equality when [he] joined the organization.”
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Article VI of the Constitution clearly states that “no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.”
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In 2016, as California attorney general, Kamala Harris launched a raid on pro-life activist David Daleiden’s home.
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Also as attorney general she proudly supported California’s Reproductive FACT Act, which forced pro-life clinics to offer information to pregnant mothers about getting an abortion.
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In 2022, the vice president claimed that religious Americans can support abortion without abandoning their faith.
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As California’s attorney general, Harris co-sponsored and promoted the Reproductive FACT Act, which required pro-life pregnancy centers to post notices that provided information on where to obtain abortions.
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Kamala Harris and the Biden/Harris Administration on Religious Freedom:
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Introduced a bill to weaken the Religious Freedom Restoration Act
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Opposed the Hyde Amendment, which prevents the use of federal funds for abortion procedures
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Opposed religious exemptions from the contraceptive mandate
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Co-sponsored the ‘Equality Act,’ which some view as the most serious threat to religious freedom ever considered by Congress
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Opposed free speech for religious wedding vendors and business owners
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Opposed a landmark Supreme Court ruling that held Americans do not lose their religious freedom when they open a business
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​Tim Walz on Religious Freedom
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A review of Walz’s record during his six years as governor shows that he faced multiple lawsuits accusing him of infringing on religious liberty, reports The Daily Signal.
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In 2020, after the pandemic shutdowns, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz issued an executive order allowing stores to open at 50% capacity. Religious gatherings, however, were limited to no more than 10 people. In May 2023, Walz signed a bill that specifically excluded religious universities with statements of faith from a tremendously beneficial state program. Read more here.