Preface
“What in the World is Religious Freedom?”
by Thomas Farr, November 1, 2019
“Religious freedom is important for everyone, everywhere. Why? Because religion is important for everyone, everywhere. Human beings are innately religious. Our nature impels us to seek answers to profound questions about ultimate things. If we are not free to pursue those answers, and to live according to the truths we discover, we cannot live a fully human life.
Religious freedom is therefore the right of all persons to believe, speak, and act – individually and in community with others, in private and in public – in accord with their understanding of ultimate truth.”
“Religious freedom is important for everyone, everywhere. Why? Because religion is important for everyone, everywhere. Human beings are innately religious. Our nature impels us to seek answers to profound questions about ultimate things. If we are not free to pursue those answers, and to live according to the truths we discover, we cannot live a fully human life.
Religious freedom is therefore the right of all persons to believe, speak, and act – individually and in community with others, in private and in public – in accord with their understanding of ultimate truth.”
Publications
Toward a Stable and Inclusive Iraq? Individual and Institutional Religious Freedom Can Help
April 22, 2022
FORIS Working Group Report | Why People Need Religious Institutions and Why Religious Institutions Need Freedom
October 20, 2021
FORIS Working Group Report | Institutional Religious Freedom and the Common Good: Significance, Challenges, and Policy Implications
September 15, 2021
Western Societies Need Proactive Policies to Protect Institutional Religious Freedom
September 10, 2021
America’s International Religious Freedom Policy Must Account for Competing Local Definitions of Religion and the Common Good
August 27, 2021
Religious Freedom: Why Now? Defending an Embattled Human Right
May 13, 2020
Reaffirming Human Dignity and Its Relationship to Religious Freedom
November 26, 2019
New Release: Homo Religiosus? Co-Edited by Timothy Shah
May 24, 2018
Blog Posts
Pope Benedict XVI: A Witness to Religious Freedom
January 3, 2023
Fighting Religious Persecution
August 26, 2022
Putting Religious Freedom Back on the Map
July 22, 2022
Today’s Fight for Religious Freedom
July 8, 2022
Clash of the Acronyms? Finding The Right FoRBula in the Fight for Religious Freedom
June 17, 2022
How Liz Truss Can Champion Religious Freedom at U.K. Ministerial Conference
May 27, 2022
The Travail of International Religious Freedom, and of U.S. Leadership
March 25, 2022
On Human Rights Day: Working for Religious Freedom for Everyone, Everywhere
December 10, 2020
The World Needs Clarity on Human Rights
August 7, 2020
Realizing Religious Freedom in the Islamic World
September 18, 2019
Cornerstone Forum
Today’s Fight for Religious Freedom
July 8, 2022
Institutional Religious Freedom: Negotiating Diverse Convictions and Societal Harms
October 3, 2019
Rights, Institutions, and Religious Freedom: Toward Clarity in the Midst of Controversy
September 26, 2019
Realizing Religious Freedom in the Islamic World
September 18, 2019
A Philosophical Basis for Transatlantic Cooperation on Religious Freedom?
July 19, 2016
Press Releases
Speaking Engagements
A Robust Understanding of Tolerance Must Be Rooted in Human Dignity, Conscience, and Reason
December 20, 2019
The Extraordinary Power of Religious Freedom to Promote Stability and Social Good
June 14, 2019
Senate Testimony: The Global Crisis of Religious Freedom: the Stakes for America and the World
October 2, 2018
Tom Farr Congressional Testimony: Religious Freedom Under Siege
October 12, 2016
Videos
RFI Contributes to 2022 International Ministerial Conference in London
July 22, 2022
Catholic University Hosts Human Rights Lecture Featuring Former Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom
October 21, 2021
RFI President Addresses United Nations NGO Committee on Freedom of Religion or Belief
March 1, 2019