[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 6636]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 RECOGNIZING THE NATIONAL DAY OF REASON

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                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 30, 2014

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise to ask the House of Representatives 
to join me in recognizing the National Day of Reason, which occurs this 
year on Thursday, May 1st.
  As I see nations around the world in turmoil, among people of 
different religious faiths, we are moved to deeper appreciation for the 
Framers, who bequeathed us the Constitution, which requires the 
separation of church and state. We could not have built a vast nation 
of extraordinary religious and ethnic diversity were it not for our 
tolerance of the world's great religions, all of which exist among us 
in our nation today, and of Americans who claim no religion. I hope 
that all Americans--religious, non-religious and secular alike--will 
join in observing the National Day of Reason, today, May 1, 2014. This 
day provides an opportunity to celebrate and recognize the positive 
impacts on humanity of reason, critical thought and the scientific 
method, which have always been acknowledged to be consistent with 
religious faith, and to reaffirm that the line between religion and 
government must remain indelible.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask the House of Representatives to join me in 
recognizing the National Day of Reason.

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