[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 1]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 418]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


        TRIBUTE TO WORLD SABBATH DAY OF RELIGIOUS RECONCILIATION

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DAVID E. BONIOR

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 29, 2002

  Mr. BONIOR. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to recognize World Sabbath Day 
and the hope for religious peace and justice that I believe it will 
bring. I strongly believe that religious prejudice and violence have no 
place in our world, and I feel that only through education and 
tolerance can we make a difference.
  This is why World Sabbath Day and the work of Reverend Rodney 
Reinhart and Reverend Ed Mullins are so important to expanding 
compassion and freedom in our world. Through the communication and 
honesty that is brought forth from people of different faiths, we learn 
about each other, and how to respect our differences.
  What World Sabbath Day represents, and what Reverend Reinhart and 
Reverend Mull-ins know so well, is that religious persecution of any 
type should not be tolerated or condoned anywhere. One of the 
fundamental tenets upon which our country was founded was the freedom 
to choose one's religion. I believe that we as a nation have a moral 
obligation to uphold that principle at home as well as abroad. The 
United States needs to be more aggressive in promoting tolerance of 
religious minorities throughout the world.
  Reverend Reinhart and Reverend Mullins know this, and they have been 
to Africa, the United Nations, and several other places in North 
America to promote World Sabbath Day. And although there is much work 
to be done to end religious bigotry and hatred, World Sabbath Day is a 
good start.

                          ____________________