Jan. 16 Is Religious Freedom Day

Today (Jan. 16) is Religious Freedom Day-- the 233rd anniversary of the enactment of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. On Tuesday, President Trump issued a Presidential Proclamation calling on Americans "to commemorate this day with events and activities that remind us of our shared heritage of religious liberty and that teach us how to secure this blessing both at home and around the world."  The Proclamation says in part:

Unfortunately, the fundamental human right to religious freedom is under attack.  Efforts to circumscribe religious freedom — or to separate it from adjoining civil liberties, like property rights or free speech — are on the rise.  Over time, legislative and political attacks on religious freedom have given way to actual violence.  Last October, we witnessed a horrific attack on the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania — the deadliest attack on the Jewish community in our Nation’s history.  Tragically, attacks on people of faith and their houses of worship have increased in frequency in recent years.