[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 12 (Wednesday, January 20, 1999)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 2989-2990]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-1373]
Presidential Documents
Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 12 / Wednesday, January 20, 1999 /
Presidential Documents
___________________________________________________________________
Title 3--
The President
[[Page 2989]]
Proclamation 7162 of January 14, 1999
Religious Freedom Day, 1999
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
On Religious Freedom Day we commemorate a landmark
achievement in the history of our Nation: the adoption
in 1786 by the Virginia legislature of a religious
freedom statute. This historic legislation, drafted by
Thomas Jefferson and co-sponsored by James Madison, was
designed to prevent religious discrimination and to
protect Virginians from pressure to join or support any
church. It served as the model for the First Amendment
of our Constitution, the guarantee of freedom of
religion that has beckoned so many people fleeing
persecution to seek sanctuary in this land.
Americans are a deeply religious people, and our right
to worship as we choose, to follow our own personal
beliefs, is the source of much of our Nation's
strength. Our churches, synagogues, mosques, temples,
and other houses of worship are centers of community
service and community life. They preserve and promote
the values and religious traditions that have infused
our efforts to build a civil society based on mutual
respect, compassion, and generosity. They provide our
children with the moral compass to make wise choices.
America's reverence for religious freedom and religious
tolerance has saved us from much of the hatred and
violence that have plagued so many other peoples around
the world. We have always been vigilant in protecting
this freedom, but our efforts cannot stop at our own
shores. We cannot ignore the suffering of men and women
across the globe today who are harassed, imprisoned,
tortured, and executed simply for seeking to live by
their own beliefs. Freedom of religion is a fundamental
human right that must be upheld by every nation and
guaranteed by every government. The promotion of
religious freedom for all peoples must continue to
serve as a central element of our foreign policy.
Reflecting our steadfast commitment to this goal, last
fall the Congress passed, and I was proud to sign into
law, the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998.
This legislation enhances our ability to advance
freedom of religion for men and women of all faiths
throughout the world. It also establishes a new
position at the Department of State--the Ambassador at
Large for International Religious Freedom--to ensure
that religious liberty concerns receive consistent and
appropriate attention at the highest policymaking
levels.
On Religious Freedom Day, let us give thanks for this
precious right that has so profoundly shaped and
sustained our Nation, and let us strengthen our efforts
to share its blessings with oppressed peoples
everywhere.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United
States, do hereby proclaim January 16, 1999, as
Religious Freedom Day. I call upon the people of the
United States to observe this day with appropriate
ceremonies, activities, and programs, and I urge all
Americans to reaffirm their devotion to the fundamental
principles of religious freedom and religious
tolerance.
[[Page 2990]]
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
fourteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord
nineteen hundred and ninety-nine, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two
hundred and twenty-third.
(Presidential Sig.)
[FR Doc. 99-1373
Filed 1-19-99; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3195-01-P