A prominent evangelical leader who attended the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington Thursday believes President Barack Obama’s speech championing religious freedom needs to be put into practice by his administration to end religious intolerance in the United States and abroad.
Obama’s speech to the crowd of 3,600 that included the Dalai Lama focused on religious freedom and the need to combat evil actions carried out by militants in the name of religion across the world.
Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference who attended the prayer breakfast, told The Christian Post that he respects Obama’s spiritual convictions, but nevertheless is a critic of the administration’s actions that undermine religious freedom in the U.S.
These hot button religious freedom issues include the HHS’ contraception mandate and how it affects religious entities that hold moral objections to some or all forms of birth control, specifically those that cause the early terminiation of a pregnancy.
“Having sat down with the president previously and having witnessed the president on many occasions defer to his faith narrative and to his commitment, it was affirming to hear the president of the United States of America once again affirm his commitment, his faith value, how it guides him, and likewise, admonishing the world in perverting religious narratives for purposes that run counter to who we are created in God’s image,” Rodriguez said.
“The rhetoric is powerful, but if we could reconcile the rhetoric with action then we could build a firewall to religious intolerance in the 21st century,” Rodriguez told CP, reiterating his point that there are “religious liberty issues” both “around the world” and “even in our own nation.”
“I do believe we have deviated from that fundamental right, even now in our current day in age. It’s great for us to have a Prayer Breakfast. Again, it’s inspiring, it’s wonderful,” he said.
Click here to read more.
SOURCE: The Christian Post
Michael Gryboski
