[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Pages 513-514]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 27--AFFIRMING THE IMPORTANCE OF RELIGIOUS 
   FREEDOM AS A FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHT THAT IS ESSENTIAL TO A FREE 
     SOCIETY AND IS PROTECTED FOR ALL AMERICANS BY THE TEXT OF THE 
CONSTITUTION, AND RECOGNIZING THE 230TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ENACTMENT OF 
               THE VIRGINIA STATUTE FOR RELIGIOUS FREEDOM

  Mr. DAINES (for himself, Mr. Hatch, Mr. Blunt, Mr. Lankford, Mr. Lee, 
Mr. Sasse, Mr. Cassidy, Mr. Risch, Mr. Cotton, Mr. Cochran, Mr. Cornyn, 
Mr. Boozman, and Mr. Inhofe) submitted the following concurrent 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary:

                            S. Con. Res. 27

       Whereas American democracy is rooted in the fundamental 
     truth that all are created equal, endowed by our Creator with 
     certain inalienable rights, among which are life, liberty, 
     and the pursuit of happiness;
       Whereas few freedoms were more valued by those who settled 
     this nation than the freedom of conscience, prompting Thomas 
     Jefferson to declare in the Letter to New London Methodists, 
     dated Feb. 4, 1809, that ``no provision in our Constitution 
     ought to be dearer to man than that which protects the rights 
     of conscience against the enterprises of the civil 
     authority'';
       Whereas the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, which 
     was drafted by Thomas Jefferson and considered by him to be 
     one of his greatest achievements, was enacted on January 16, 
     1786, and became the forerunner of the Free Exercise Clause 
     of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution;
       Whereas ``the right to freedom of religion undergirds the 
     very origin and existence of the United States'', a freedom 
     which was established by our Nation's founders ``in law, as a 
     fundamental right and as a pillar of our Nation'', as noted 
     in section 2 of the International Religious Freedom Act of 
     1998;
       Whereas the role of religion in American society and public 
     life has a long and robust tradition;
       Whereas those who have studied American democracy from an 
     outside perspective, such as Alexis de Tocqueville, have 
     noted that religion plays a central role in preserving our 
     government because it provides a moral base that is required 
     for democracy to succeed;
       Whereas the Supreme Court has affirmed in Town of Greece v. 
     Galloway that ``people of many faiths may be united in a 
     community of tolerance and devotion'';
       Whereas the principle of religious freedom ``has guided our 
     Nation forward'', as expressed by the 44th President of the 
     United States in his Presidential Proclamation on Religious 
     Freedom Day in 2011, and ``is a universal human right to be 
     protected here at home and across the globe'', as expressed 
     by the 44th President of the United States on the same 
     occassion in 2013;
       Whereas ``Freedom of religion is a fundamental human right 
     that must be upheld by every nation and guaranteed by every 
     government'', as expressed by the 42nd President of the 
     United States in his Presidential Proclamation on Religious 
     Freedom Day in 1999;
       Whereas the First Amendment protects the right of 
     individuals to freely express and act on their religious 
     beliefs, as well as the freedom of all individuals to not be 
     coerced to profess or act on a religious belief to which they 
     do not adhere;
       Whereas ``our laws and institutions should not impede or 
     hinder but rather should protect and preserve fundamental 
     religious liberties'', as expressed by the 42nd President of 
     the United States in his remarks on signing the Religious 
     Freedom Restoration Act of 1993;
       Whereas for countless Americans, their faith is an integral 
     part of every aspect of their daily lives, and is not limited 
     to their homes, to houses of worship, or to doctrinal creeds;
       Whereas ``religious faith has inspired many of our fellow 
     citizens to help build a better Nation'', where ``people of 
     faith continue to wage a determined campaign to meet needs 
     and fight suffering'', as expressed by the 43rd President of 
     the United States in his Presidential Proclamation on 
     Religious Freedom Day in 2003;
       Whereas ``from its birth to this day, the United States has 
     prized this legacy of religious freedom and honored this 
     heritage by standing for religious freedom and offering 
     refuge to those suffering religious persecution'', as noted 
     in section 2 of the International Religious Freedom Act of 
     1998;
       Whereas Thomas Jefferson noted in 1822 that the 
     constitutional freedom of religion is ``the most inalienable 
     and sacred of all human rights'', and also wrote in 1798 that 
     each right encompassed in the First Amendment is dependent on 
     the others, ``thereby

[[Page 514]]

     guarding in the same sentence, and under the same words, the 
     freedom of religion, of speech, and of the press: insomuch, 
     that whatever violated either, throws down the sanctuary 
     which covers the others'';
       Whereas religious freedom ``has been integral to the 
     preservation and development of the United States'', and 
     ``the free exercise of religion goes hand in hand with the 
     preservation of our other rights'', as expressed by the 41st 
     President of the United States in his Presidential 
     Proclamation on Religious Freedom Day in 1993; and
       Whereas we ``continue to proclaim the fundamental right of 
     all peoples to believe and worship according to their own 
     conscience, to affirm their beliefs openly and freely, and to 
     practice their faith without fear or intimidation'', as 
     expressed by the 42nd President of the United States in his 
     Presidential Proclamation on Religious Freedom Day in 1998; 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) honors the 230th anniversary of the passage of the 
     Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom on Religious Freedom 
     Day, January 16, 2016; and
       (2) affirms that--
       (A) religious freedom includes the right to live, work, 
     associate, and worship in accordance with one's beliefs for 
     people of any faith or of no faith;
       (B) all Americans can be unified in supporting religious 
     freedom, regardless of differing individual beliefs, because 
     it is a fundamental human right; and
       (C) ``the American people will remain forever unshackled in 
     matters of faith'', as expressed by the 44th President of the 
     United States in his Presidential Proclamation on Religious 
     Freedom Day in 2012.

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