Rachel Laser: Point

Candidates’ commitment to religious freedom is what matters

Much has been written about the religious beliefs of presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, as well as candidates up and down the ballot.

In a country whose Constitution demands the separation of church and state as the shield that protects religious freedom for all Americans, the questions that voters should be asking are: Are the candidates committed to our foundational promise of church-state separation, the American original that is the cornerstone of religious freedom? Have the candidates committed to representing all of their constituents, not just those who share their religious beliefs? Are the candidates likely to abuse the power of their office to impose their personal religious beliefs on others?

There are too many unfortunate examples of public officials attempting to enshrine their religious beliefs into law for voters to take these questions lightly. Take Missouri, for example, where Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the National Women’s Law Center are suing to block a total abortion ban as a violation of church-state separation. Missouri legislators wrote into the law banning abortion that “Almighty God is the author of life.” They spoke repeatedly about their personal religious beliefs as they debated the bill.

As our 13 Christian, Jewish and Unitarian Universalist faith leader plaintiffs have made clear, Missourians, like people nationwide, have diverse religious beliefs that inform diverse views about abortion. In a country that promises religious freedom, everyone must be free to make decisions about their own bodies based on their beliefs. Abortion bans like Missouri’s violate that promise.

In February, Alabama Supreme Court justices inserted theological beliefs about the origin of life in a decision that imperiled the ability of Alabamians to have children through in vitro fertilization. The chief justice’s opinion went even further, and repeatedly referenced God and his religious beliefs, and he even quoted from the Bible to justify his decision. These justifications have no place in court decisions.

Lawmakers nationwide are attempting to insert their Christian Nationalist views — the false claim that America was founded for White Christians and that our laws must continue to secure their privilege — into our public schools. This includes religiously motivated book bans; laws requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in every public school classroom and the Bible to be taught in every public school (AU and allies are suing to stop both in Louisiana and Oklahoma, respectively); and placing unqualified chaplains as counselors in public schools, just to name a few examples.

These efforts undermine the right of families to decide if, when and how children engage with religion. Students who are religious or racial minorities, nonreligious, LGBTQ+ or belong to other often-marginalized communities are especially harmed by these Christian Nationalist efforts. But Christians who do not subscribe to the government-favored version of Christianity are harmed, too. In fact, all of our cases above feature Christian clergy plaintiffs who do not want the government to misuse or misrepresent their faith and care deeply about their neighbors’ religious freedom.

There is a powerful antidote to this scourge of religious extremism: church-state separation. Church-state separation prevents Christian Nationalists from imposing their narrow beliefs on the rest of us. It protects everyone’s freedom to live as themselves and believe as they choose. Church-state separation is ever more critical with our country’s increasing religious diversity and the religious “nones” now representing nearly a third of the population.

It’s not the religion of our elected officials that matters. What matters is that they uphold our country’s and every state’s promise of religious freedom and protect everyone’s right to believe as they choose, so long as they don’t harm others.

Many are feeling despair as they watch religious extremists occupy public offices everywhere, from the federal government to our local school boards. We must remember that they have neither the majority of Americans nor core American values on their side.

It’s past time for a national recommitment to separate church and state. We must join together across our differences and insist that our elected officials uphold this foundational principle that protects all of us. Our freedoms, our equality and our democracy depend on it.

Rachel Laser is the president and CEO of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. She wrote this for InsideSources.com.

Carrie Sheffield: Counterpoint

A contrast in faith viewpoints

Most Americans don’t see either Kamala Harris or Donald Trump as particularly religious or Christian, according to a new survey by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs. A large plurality of Americans — 41% — say neither Trump nor Harris represents their religious views. Based on both major candidates’ track records — and their worldviews — neither candidate threatens to impose theocratic rule.

However, their governing records show significant differences in how the candidates view faith and prioritize protecting religious freedom.

As president, Trump boldly stood against antisemitism through robust actions countering Iranian aggression against Israel. He also moved the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, and he forged the historic Abraham Accords for Middle East peace between Arabs and Jews.

In contrast, the Biden-Harris White House enabled global antisemitism, cowering and caving to Iran, enabling the Iranian supreme leader and his cronies to bankroll the worst Jewish massacre since the Holocaust. Harris also bowed to the antisemitic wing of her party by passing over Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro for her vice-presidential selection — a decision that could cost her the White House if she loses the delegate-rich Keystone State.

While Christian and Jewish theology and activist groups strongly support human rights and liberation (narratives of Moses and Jesus, for example), the Trump White House took bold action to protect human trafficking victims. It implemented policies discouraging illegal immigration, which disincentivizes human trafficking.

Harris does little for women and girls trafficked and sexually assaulted at our southern border. Amnesty International reported, “As many as six out of every 10 migrant women and girls experience sexual violence during the journey.” Doctors Without Borders found that one in three women traveling through Mexico are sexually assaulted. The United Nations estimates among women crossing without husbands or families, up to 70% suffer abuse.

Rampant sexual abuse festers and grows as illegal immigration swells from policies like those from the White House.

Harris also played a crucial role in forcing Title IX changes restricting women’s rights and threatening religious liberty. As First Liberty notes, the Biden-Harris administration Title IX rules give federal bureaucrats broad powers to bully and exclude students and teachers with deeply held religious convictions who don’t share Harris’ ideology on sexuality and gender.

First Liberty filed a public comment on behalf of Houston Christian University, arguing Harris’ Title IX changes disproportionately burden faith-based schools for their religious beliefs and practices.

In sharp contrast, Trump is a fierce opponent of critical gender theory’s attempt to harm women by redefining sex and, in the process, restricting religious liberty.

While in office, Trump safeguarded the religious liberty of medical professionals, educators and religious groups such as the Catholic Little Sisters of the Poor. He did this by protecting their right to religious and moral objections to government insurance contraception mandates.

The Biden-Harris administration sparked outrage from religious activists for seeking to roll back moral objection exemptions from Obamacare contraceptive mandates.

Harris’ anti-Catholic bias proved so concerning that she provoked the Rev. Paul Scalia, a Catholic priest and son of late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, during a sermon at St. James Catholic Church in Falls Church, Va.

Singling out Harris by name during the heated 2020 election aftermath, Scalia expressed concern that Harris, on the Senate Judiciary Committee, harassed now-Judge Brian Buescher, a Trump nominee for a U.S. District Court. Harris was upset that Buescher belonged to Knights of Columbus, a Catholic men’s charity that cared for the sick, poor and disabled and offered disaster relief and employment services.

“Senator Harris had the not-so-subtle implication that the Knights of Columbus were somehow, some kind of a hate group or something like that,” Scalia said. “The Knights of Columbus.”

Harris’ anti-religion bias is an especially sad irony given our Mayflower Pilgrims sailed to America on a quest for respite from religious persecution in Europe.

Regardless of whether they are faithful, Americans know religious liberty is a core value of our country and deserve leaders who stand up for this constitutional freedom.

Carrie Sheffield is a senior policy analyst for Independent Women’s Voice. She wrote this for InsideSources.com.