Religious Freedom Day in the United States

In the name of religious freedom throughout the world.Declaring January 16 as Religious Freedom Day in the United States, President Bush declared that the right to religious faith and the expression of that faith in words and deeds "is a right that every human being should have."

Noting that there are many people in the world who do not enjoy such freedoms, the President said, “By acting together for religious freedom around the world, we can create a better future for people of all faiths.”

The following is an excerpt from Bush's statement:

Every year on January 16, we celebrate Religious Freedom Day in commemoration of the passage of the Virginia Religious Freedom Act by the Virginia General Assembly in 1786. Written by Thomas Jefferson, this historic law created the moral and legal preconditions for the passage of religious freedom provisions in the First Amendment text of the United States Constitution.

With the provisions on freedom of religion contained in our Constitution—the prohibition of state religion and the free exercise of religion—begins the first of the ten amendments that make up the Bill of Rights. Because the Founding Fathers put the guarantee of religious freedom first among other constitutionally protected rights, religious freedom in America is often called the first freedom. The right to religious belief and the free exercise of such beliefs are among the most fundamental freedoms we possess. James Madison once said, “The religion of every man must remain the work of every man’s conviction and conscience; and every man has the right to follow it as prescribed.” This right is inherently an inalienable right.” (2003)