Religious Freedom Always Matters

Howdy Modi event in Houston

This morning we arrived early at a conservation area for what ended up being an 5.5 kilometre ramble along several interconnecting trails. We were all alone for most of the walk but near the conclusion we encountered two mothers with children at different spots. The kids were quite young but we heard the moms gently remind them to stay well back as we passed, even as we were doing the same. Ruth commented that this physical distancing is now taking on the status of "look both ways before you cross the street," a lesson taught to children by responsible parents. 

That early start is one reason I didn't get to my blog-writing until now. Another reason is that The Plague seems to dominate every aspect of life these days, for obvious reasons. When a deadly virus rolls into town it makes sense to pay attention, warn everybody, and figure out how to get it to move on. Someday that won't be necessary, but for now it's what we must do.

There are other stories of importance, just the same, and a lot of them have to do with issues of faith, including religious freedom, a subject I've returned to many times.

A recently released report by the Pew Research Center published on the basis of a decade of research indicates that government interference in religious expression is on the rise in many countries, as well as growing social hostilities,  have reached a record high in the world. At the same time another report from the US governmental commission states that religious freedom in India under the Hindu nationalist government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken "a drastic turn downward." Christians and Muslims have been affected by recently enacted restrictive laws 

Despite this evidence, at a rally in Houston last Fall which drew 50,000 President Trump called Modi "one of America's greatest, most devoted, and most loyal friends" and said he was doing "a truly exceptional job for India and all the Indian people."  Of course many of Trump's supporters are conservative Christians who claim they admire him because of his commitment to religious freedom. God only knows what they mean by that. 

The Pew report also notes that Saudi Arabia is one of a number of countries where religious repression is on the rise. Our Canadian government is allowing the export of military equipment to Saudi Arabia, an act of hypocrisy when it is clear that the regime constantly violates human and religious rights. 

I hope we all hold freedom of expression for Christians and other people of faith in our concerns and prayers, even as we are making our way through the crisis of COVID-19. Despite the pandemic we continue to have the privilege of being able to practice our faith without reprisal, even as we choose not to gather for the well-being of everyone.