The fortnight for freedom ended on July 4th but the battle for Religious Liberty continues. I visited the PA capitol on Sunday and took this picture as a reminder of how important and how tenuous is our grasp of Religious Liberty.
The Spirit of Religious Liberty
“That there be room there for such a Holy Experiment…For the nations want a precedent and My God will make It (Pennsylvania) the Seed of a Nation…. That an example may be set up to the nations… That we may do the thing that is truly wise and just.”
– William Penn
That quote wraps around the rotunda of the capitol building is from William Penn who was imprisoned 6 times for conscience sake and founded Pennsylvania as a holy experiment of Religious liberty.
On July 4, 2012 Bishop Joseph P. McFadden preached this message of Religious Liberty at the closing Mass for the Fortnight for Freedom. Some of the central issues discussed is defining what is meant today as religion and the marginalization of God in society. In his homily he said,
“Without religious freedom we have no freedom. Without religious liberty we have tyranny”
