Religious Freedom

"People demand freedom of speech as a compensation for the freedom of thought which they seldom use."   -Soren Kierkegaard

The above quote is both dated and harsh.  Dated because in Soren's day freedom of speech was evidently not a thing in Denmark.  Today, freedom of speech is an important--and core--value in democratic nations, like the United States.  I think it is a good value to maintain and protect.  And Kierkegaard's biting wit is harsh, but perhaps in a helpful way.  The point of the quote seems to hold true today.  I distill the following lesson: "We rarely exercise the freedoms we have before we go out seeking more."  When this is the case, I believe that the sought after "more" or "new freedom" is often really a grab for power or dominance or preeminence...but that is another blog.

When thinking about religious freedom in the United States of America, prayer becomes a good litmus test.  Curiously, the only segment of Christianity that pays attention to this litmus test is that on the righthand side of the political spectrum.  Many faithful Christians worry over--and speak out about--Christian prayer in public place.  Most notably, prayer in public schools.  The rhetoric is pervasive: the government refuses to allow our young people to pray, and this is destroying the faith and the moral fabric of our nation.  The ban on prayer in public schools is seen as an infringement on not just Christianity, but on our nation's core value of religious liberty itself.

And yet, Christians are, indeed, free to pray in this country--and in public!  I often pray out-loud, and even loudly, before meals in restaurants.  I pray out-loud and noticeably in hospital waiting rooms, work places, stores, parks, jails, schools and courthouses.  No one has locked me up.  Bakers will still sell me cakes.  Now, these prayers are almost always said with a small group of people, and I am not given the authority of the government to speak for all who are present.  I pray for and with the ones who--in freedom--decide to participate for themselves.  This is crucial, as it is much different than a judge or a teacher (as government officials or employees) praying in a Christian way from a position of power.

Our children can pray at school, especially if we take St. Paul's exhortation seriously: "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."  (see 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).  A student has freedom to pray before a test.  Students have the freedom to circle up and pray in public between the bus and the school building--or even, if it doesn't disrupt the work they must do, in the classroom or cafeteria or playground.  Such freedom we have already is no small thing.  There are yet places in the world that any open or noticeable Christian prayer is met with imprisonment, violence, or death.  In many countries, church attendance is dangerous or completely banned...yet we consider our condition one of persecution, even while we still free.

Why do we feel this way?  I think it is grief.  Christians are grieving the loss of preeminence of the Christian faith in this country.  We are grieving the fact that we have to share public space with other religions--in reality, not just in theory.  Christians are used to having people in authority instruct us on when and how to pray.  We are used to having officials pray for us.  Now that these officials cannot pray because of mixed crowds, we forget that we can still pray.  We forget that our prayers are just as powerful, I would say even more powerful, when we do it in faith and piety, rather than an official leading us.  (And let us remember that much of the time the officials I am referring to are NOT religious officials, but public officials.  Religious officials also have complete freedom to pray on behalf of the faithful in public---even at public events such as Memorial Day gatherings, baccalaureate services, and churches.  Yes, churches are public spaces.)

I must be clear here.  I am not just saying that we are free to pray individually and in private.  We are also--right now--free to pray in public and in groups.  Yet that freedom is, and I believe must be, weighed against the core American value of freedom of religion.  It is wrong for public officials to make any religion the presupposed norm by forcing a particular kind of prayer upon a particular group, when that group may represent other religions or no religion at all.  A president can ask the nation to pray, but the president should not become the priest or priestess.

I recently led a Bible study with some church members on the book of Daniel.  The whole book explores the difficulties of being faithful in religious practice in the midst of a nation that puts no value in religious freedom.  More than once, Daniel (or his fellow Jews) are told how and to whom to pray by the Babylonian Emperor.  They refuse and are sentenced to death.  Read the book to see how that turns out.

Anyway, in conversation about the book of Daniel, one person shared an experience at work.  This person works for a major regional employer, and shared how that employer had set aside a particular room at one of their facilities for Muslims to pray.  Followers of Islam are required to pray five times a day.  Muslim employees voiced their need for a place to fulfill this spiritual duty while at work.  Something like this can only happen in a nation whose value is religious freedom.  The one who shared this story seemed to admire the faith and discipline of the muslim co-workers.  And yet, this Christian church member didn't quite know what to make of the whole thing.

Many Americans Christians see public space being carved out for Muslims to express their faith and react with xenophobia or jealousy.  But there are at least two much more positive and helpful ways to react to Muslim prayer chapels at work--and every American can fit into one or both of these:

First, we can be proud of our values and rejoice in our freedoms.  We live in a nation where a group of people can voice a religious need or desire, and change can happen.  We live in a nation that protects the rights of her citizens to not just believe a particular religion, but also to practice that religion.  Such a society is not often seen on this earth.  Look at what we have built.

Second, we--and here I mean Christians in particular--we Christians can react with renewed energy to practice what we believe.  Muslims are required to pray five times a day.  What are Christians required to do?  How do those spiritual disciplines alter the way you live?  What do you need in and from a free society in order to be faithful Christians?  Do those things.  Plenty of public and private institutions have Christian Chapels...are they being used?  You see, Christian parents can influence their school districts in such a way that those schools no longer schedule required activities on Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings.  All it takes is the people to voice their need and desire.  If that voice is clear, change will happen...because we live in a nation of religious freedom.

The basic and crucial Christian discipline is going to church.  When we take stock of which institutions are infringing upon that duty, we quickly see that the government is not the party responsible for inhibiting the religious liberty of Christians.  I am not sure the government does anything on Sunday mornings.  Even the military, and other government agencies that must operate 24-7, work hard to give their people the chance to worship if they so desire (and as they so desire).  Government agencies even observe, or at least respect as far as possible, various holidays in various religions.  Yet, our schools hold extracurriculars on Sundays.  Yet, youth in school sports are punished if they choose to miss practice or a game because of worship or a church event.  Yet, our employers see Sundays as another work day, and do not even respect the perfectly secular idea of what a weekend is and should be (for we all need rest from our labors).  Yet, stores and businesses do not close down, not even on the major Holy Days (holidays).  Why not?  These institutions are not the bad guys.  Schools, employers, and businesses are not evil, nor do they intend on taking away religious liberty.  No, these organizations are simply responding to the will and desire of the faithful.  We have given up these liberties through our own habits.  And these freedoms can only be restored by the will and voice of the people.  Christians would be served by becoming more organized, and more passionate about their own faith and its practices.  The government isn't going to will it for us, isn't going to believe it for us, and isn't going to do it for us.  Indeed, the U.S. government shouldn't be the source or the disciplinarian of the Christian faith.

Perhaps Christians are being persecuted in the United States.  Before we can figure out the truth of that question, though, we need to exercise the freedoms we do have.  Christians have a great deal of freedom in this country.  What I most often see, however, is a lack of desire in Christians to exercise those freedoms.  We have the freedom, just not the will or the work.  Shouldn't we use what we have before we start demanding more?

In any case, Jesus is present in our very midst, reminding us about our need to pray always and not to lose heart...even if and when we endure injustice.  Luke 18:1-8   Thanks be to God for that reminder.  Amen.