A symposium, Religious Freedom and the Common Good, was held November 15, 2016, at Georgetown University. Organized by the Religious Freedom Project of the University’s Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs, the event signified completion of the sixth year of the Project’s work to address all aspects of religious freedom in the United States and internationally.
The symposium included a keynote address by U.S. Senator Benjamin Sasse of Nebraska and featured four panels of experts representing a broad spectrum of views on religion. Two of the four panels focused on religious freedom as a major contributing factor to human flourishing and economic growth.
Symposium panels focused on religious freedom as a major contributing factor to human flourishing and economic growth.
The Religious Freedom Project (RFP) is the nation’s only university-based program devoted exclusively to analysis of religious freedom, a basic human right restricted in many parts of the world. Under the leadership of Director Thomas Farr and Associate Director Timothy Shah, RFP engages a team of international scholars to examine and debate the meaning and value of religious liberty; its importance for democracy; and its role in social and economic development, international diplomacy, and the struggle against violent religious extremism.
The Religious Freedom Project has also organized the Religious Freedom Institute to be “on the leading edge of research and practice in the promotion of religious freedom around the world.” As Professor Farr describes it, its role is “to take the learning of the RFP and put it on the ground” to shape the rhetoric for religious freedom advocacy.
Details of the symposium and Senator Sasse’s address may be viewed on the RFP website. More information about the Religious Freedom Institute, including their Cornerstone Blog, may be found here.
