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
ReportReligious Contributions to Mental Health: Social Benefits of Religion, Volume 4
This is the next report of a series of publications about contributions of people of faith and religious organizations to society. Previous reports have focused on these contributions to social services, constitutional rights, and education. This publication will...
InsightsHow faith bolsters mental health
Utah Governor Spencer Cox recently explained that religion provides a shortcut to building communities of connection and trust. This is confirmed in a recent report from Sutherland Institute which describes the protective effects of religious participation for...
InsightsForced to facilitate abortion? A church challenges Washington’s health coverage law
A church in Washington is challenging a state law that requires it to provide abortion coverage in employee health care plans. That challenge is now being considered by a large panel of appeals court judges in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit....
TakeawaysCurated Insights: Sutherland launches new weekly policy newsletters
Christine Cooke Fairbanks will author Wednesday’s “Beyond the Bell,” an education policy newsletter. Bill Duncan will author Thursday’s “Law & Conscience,” a religious freedom and constitutional law newsletter. This week, Sutherland unveiled weekly...
InsightsParents and religious freedom
One of the cases the U.S. Supreme Court will be deciding in the next couple of months is called Mahmoud v. Taylor. In March, Sutherland filed an amicus brief in the case. The case will provide critical direction to lower courts about what to do when government...
CommentaryIn fight between Maryland school district and parental rights, U.S. Supreme Court should protect religious freedom
Originally published in Deseret News. Can schools tell parents they cannot direct how their children are taught about sensitive topics in public schools, even when the law gives parents that right? The U.S. Supreme Court held oral arguments in a case, Mahmoud v....
InsightsWhy Utah’s ongoing religious freedom reforms are worthwhile
Constitutional protections for religious freedom provide a backstop, but clear statutory rules help avoid conflicts and costly litigation Several bills before the Utah legislature extend practical religious freedom protections to higher education, health care...
InsightsLoneliness is not a mystery. We’ve known the cure for decades
Loneliness is not primarily a personal or psychological failure, but the predictable result of weakened families, faith communities, and civic institutions. Belonging is sustained by obligation and participation, not awareness or emotional expression; institutions...
InsightsReligious liberty doesn’t end at the college classroom door
A recent story of a student being penalized for expressing religious beliefs as part of a college assignment raises a related concern about students being required to fulfill assignments that violate their faith or conscience. These situations have arisen in a...