Policy
Religious Freedom
Respecting human dignity requires that we respect the core elements of how people and groups identify themselves, including their religious beliefs. Religious belief has been a powerful motivation for protecting the rights and liberties of others; it kindled movements to abolish slavery and protect Americans’ civil rights. For millions of Americans, religion is the source of the values required in a free society, such as understanding, respect and sacrifice for others. Additionally, religious institutions provide irreplaceable care for the most vulnerable people in society.
For all of these reasons, the right to exercise religion is a fundamental human right. The law should respect the independence of religious institutions, defend the right of conscience, and protect the right of individuals to act on their religious beliefs, while establishing reasonable protections for public health and safety in a spirit of fairness for all.
Religious Freedom
Respecting human dignity requires that we respect the core elements of how people and groups identify themselves, including their religious beliefs. Religious belief has been a powerful motivation for protecting the rights and liberties of others; it kindled movements to abolish slavery and protect Americans’ civil rights. For millions of Americans, religion is the source of the values required in a free society, such as understanding, respect and sacrifice for others. Additionally, religious institutions provide irreplaceable care for the most vulnerable people in society.
For all of these reasons, the right to exercise religion is a fundamental human right. The law should respect the independence of religious institutions, defend the right of conscience, and protect the right of individuals to act on their religious beliefs, while establishing reasonable protections for public health and safety in a spirit of fairness for all.
Published Research
Conversations
Religious institutions are essential to freedom
Government needs to stay in its lane
It's a bad idea for government to violate religious liberty
Religious liberty is good for everyone – not just religious people
Religion doesn't need a permission slip from the government
Religious freedom and conscience in higher education
Religious freedom, courts, and federalism in Utah | Bill Duncan
The benefit of religious contributions to society
How facts help provide a more positive perception of religion
Religious institutions are essential to freedom
Government needs to stay in its lane
It's a bad idea for government to violate religious liberty
Insights & Takeaways
InsightsWhy religion strengthens families – and why policy should protect it
Religion is the family’s strongest ally. Religious practice is associated with dedication to marriage and parenting, promoting a happy and successful family life. Religious freedom helps by allowing people of faith to act in ways that strengthen families. Religion...
ReportReligious Contributions to the Family: Social Benefits of Religion, Volume 5
The previous publications of this series have examined links between religion and social services, human rights, education, and mental health. Each has focused on thesocial contributions of religious institutions and people of faith in each of these fields. In a...
CommentarySCOTUS ruling in Mahmoud v. Taylor strengthens parents’ educational rights, partnership with schools
Originally published in Deseret News. The U.S. Supreme Court just affirmed that parents have the right and responsibility to direct how their children are taught about moral topics and clarified that schools must accommodate the religious practices of families....
InsightsContext for Supreme Court’s upcoming religious freedom decision
The Supreme Court’s Mahmoud v. Taylor case marks the culmination of the erosion of collaboration between parents and schools. Historically, schools in the United States were characterized by close links between school, religious influence, parental involvement, and...
CommentaryAnother unanimous win for religious freedom at the Supreme Court
Originally published in Deseret News. Is religious freedom a wedge issue? The unanimous agreement between all the justices in a decision just issued by the U.S. Supreme Court suggests the answer is no. The Court’s example provides an important corrective to the...
Impact AnalysisSurvey data shows progressive ideology is creating fissures in Jewish students’ views on Israel
Introduction The last year has seen a flourishing of pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel protests on college and university campuses. Protesters have set up encampments, occupied buildings, spewed antisemitic rhetoric, and physically barred pro-Israel Jews from campus...
InsightsThe love that lets us share a name
In an age of loneliness, declining trust, and institutional erosion, the family remains one of the last places where Americans are still formed in the habits of commitment. In a world that increasingly reduces everything to transaction or performance, faith insists...
CommentaryWhy many religious ‘nones’ are more open than they appear
Originally published in Deseret News. Earlier this month, at the International Religious Freedom Summit held in Washington, D.C., a leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints said that protecting religious freedom will build communities and nations....
FederalDefending faith and families against government overreach
The laws of nearly every State require public schools to accommodate parents’ right to determine how their children are taught about sensitive topics. These laws typically require advance notice of instruction, an opportunity for parents to review instructional...