Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) Spain launches the initiative "Believing is Your Right," in which it denounces "the cancer of the absence of religious freedom" in the world.
"You have the right to believe in God in complete freedom, without imposition, without discrimination, without persecution, but more than half of the world's population suffers unjust attacks against its religious freedom," denounced Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) on Monday during the presentation of the campaign Believing is Your Right, with which the pontifical foundation seeks to raise awareness and spark reflection in society on the right to religious freedom in the world.
"The resurgence of religious persecution has increased everywhere, and there is also greater impunity for its perpetrators," said Raquel Martín, Communications Manager of ACN Spain, during the presentation.
"In countries where human rights are absent, there is always a violation of this fundamental right. The cancer is the lack of religious freedom, and the symptoms are the attacks that appear in the newspapers," said Ms. Martín, which means that "priests in some countries are becoming an endangered species."
Father Sebastian Jacob, a priest from the Kerala region in India, one of the most punished regions in the world in terms of religious freedom, also spoke, "despite the fact that our Constitution protects the right to profess one's faith," he said.
Mr. Jacob reviewed the attacks suffered by Christians in recent years and indicated that during the first half of 2023, "more than 400 cases of persecution were reported in 23 of India's 28 states. We are on the list of countries in the world where Christians are most persecuted."
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José Luis Bazán, legal advisor to the Commission of the Bishops' Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) in Brussels, said during the campaign presentation that the right to religious freedom "is an inalienable right because it is the foundation of free societies."
In this sense, this right "creates a space of social freedom for all," said Mr. Bazán, a member of the editorial committee of ACN's Religious Freedom in the World report, for whom "however, a shadow of suspicion has been cast on religious freedom as if it were an obstacle to social progress and a permanent source of conflict."
On the contrary, "it is a modern prejudice that wants to relegate the expression of faith to mere private worship, a luxury we can do without, especially in Western democracies," which is expressed in situations "such as the pressures on parents who want to educate their children according to their convictions, or on doctors who are forced to perform abortions or euthanasia."
In the face of this, "religious freedom is a valuable contribution to the common good and social peace," concluded Mr. Bazán, "because belief is a right for all."
This article was originally published by Alfayomega (Article Link).