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What you need to know about the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom

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August 31, 2015

Authorization for the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is about to expire. Below are five basic things you need to know about USCIRF and why it matters:

1. USCIRF (pronounced ‘you-surf’ by policy wonks) is an independent, bipartisan government commission created as part of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (IRFA). The intended purpose of IRFA is

“To express United States foreign policy with respect to, and to strengthen United States advocacy on behalf of, individuals persecuted in foreign countries on account of religion; to authorize United States actions in response to violations of religious freedom in foreign countries;” (PDF)

When President Bill Clinton signed IRFA into law, unity on this issue was exceedingly bipartisan, with a 98-0 vote in the Senate and a 375-41 vote in the House.

2. USCIRF is tasked with many duties intended to promote freedom of religion and belief. The primary duty is to research and provide an annual report on the condition of global religious persecution, designed to advise the President and the State Department. One of the mechanisms included in the report is to recommend Countries of Particular Concern (CPC). A CPC is a country which either engages in or tolerates “systematic, ongoing, egregious violations of religious freedom.”

Further, as part of this report USCIRF may make policy recommendations to Congress and the President in response to documented religious persecution. USCIRF commissioners and staff also to testify before Congress, provide briefings, and publish fact sheets about specific countries.

3. USCIRF is made up of nine volunteer commissioners, assisted by a nonpartisan staff. By law, the commissioners are appointed to two-year terms (renewable) according to this formula: three appointments by the President, two by congressional leaders of the President’s party, and four by the congressional leaders of the party not in the White House. The current chair of USCIRF, as elected by commissioner peers, is Robert P. George, McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence at Princeton University and recipient of the ERLC’s 2013 John Leland Religious Liberty Award.

4. USCIRF commissioners and staff travel around the world to witness evidence of persecution first hand. Recent travel has included the nations of Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Burma, Egypt, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Russia. Other travel included visits with Syrian refugees, and with people seeking asylum through U.S.-based detention centers.

5. USCIRF has launched a number of collaborative initiatives to build global consensus on the freedom of religion and belief. The Defending Freedoms Project provides the opportunity for members of Congress to adopt prisoners of conscience in order to raise awareness. This public “adoption” often leads to better treatment of the adopted prisoner even if they aren’t fully released. Adoptees include persecuted Christians like Saeed Abedini (Iran) and Asia Bibi (Pakistan). Check here to see if your elected representative has adopted a prisoner of conscience.

In Oslo, Norway last year, USCIRF initiated the first ever international coalition of parliamentarians to advance religious freedom. The next gathering of these parliamentarians, which will include participants from 50 countries, is scheduled for September 17-19, 2015, in New York City and will discuss Multinational Efforts to Strengthen Freedom of Religion or Belief.

Why does it matter?

The incidents of religious persecution continue at a massive scale around the globe, either by government restrictions, social hostilities or non-state actors. The extreme examples of the Islamic State in Iraq and Boko Haram in Africa are the tip of the iceberg of a global environment in which the Pew Research Center reports 76 percent of our fellow human beings “live in countries with a high or very high level of restrictions on religion.” Research continues to shows that religious freedom anywhere corresponds dramatically with a safer civil society, American national security and economic stability, among other measures of human flourishing.

The 1998 IRFA represents a high-water mark of American unity and bipartisan support to declare religious freedom a crucial component of a responsible and coherent foreign policy. By affirming and promoting the freedom of conscience for all faiths and of no faith, the U.S. government not only represents an American ideal, but testifies to a universal truth that enables human flourishing. USCIRF continues to play an important role in keeping this issue in front of the President, the State Department and Congress.

Current legislation

On September 30, 2015, USCIRF is scheduled to expire. Reauthorization requires both chambers of Congress and only ten legislative days remain before the commission expires. The Southern Baptist ERLC has joined multiple nonpartisan, multi-faith letters of support for reauthorization bills in both the House (H.R. 1150) and the Senate (S. 1798).

Consider contacting your elected officials to express your support for a robust and long-term reauthorization for USCIRF, especially to members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, wherein USCIRF faces its greatest hurdle.

Matthew T. Hawkins

Matthew T. Hawkins is a former policy director of the  ERLC. He is presently pursuing a Ph.D. in public theology at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, and serves as chair of The One America Movement, a nonprofit that desires to build a united American society by eliminating toxic polarization. More information … Read More

Article 12: The Future of AI

We affirm that AI will continue to be developed in ways that we cannot currently imagine or understand, including AI that will far surpass many human abilities. God alone has the power to create life, and no future advancements in AI will usurp Him as the Creator of life. The church has a unique role in proclaiming human dignity for all and calling for the humane use of AI in all aspects of society.

We deny that AI will make us more or less human, or that AI will ever obtain a coequal level of worth, dignity, or value to image-bearers. Future advancements in AI will not ultimately fulfill our longings for a perfect world. While we are not able to comprehend or know the future, we do not fear what is to come because we know that God is omniscient and that nothing we create will be able to thwart His redemptive plan for creation or to supplant humanity as His image-bearers.

Genesis 1; Isaiah 42:8; Romans 1:20-21; 5:2; Ephesians 1:4-6; 2 Timothy 1:7-9; Revelation 5:9-10

Article 11: Public Policy

We affirm that the fundamental purposes of government are to protect human beings from harm, punish those who do evil, uphold civil liberties, and to commend those who do good. The public has a role in shaping and crafting policies concerning the use of AI in society, and these decisions should not be left to those who develop these technologies or to governments to set norms.

We deny that AI should be used by governments, corporations, or any entity to infringe upon God-given human rights. AI, even in a highly advanced state, should never be delegated the governing authority that has been granted by an all-sovereign God to human beings alone. 

Romans 13:1-7; Acts 10:35; 1 Peter 2:13-14

Article 10: War

We affirm that the use of AI in warfare should be governed by love of neighbor and the principles of just war. The use of AI may mitigate the loss of human life, provide greater protection of non-combatants, and inform better policymaking. Any lethal action conducted or substantially enabled by AI must employ 5 human oversight or review. All defense-related AI applications, such as underlying data and decision-making processes, must be subject to continual review by legitimate authorities. When these systems are deployed, human agents bear full moral responsibility for any actions taken by the system.

We deny that human agency or moral culpability in war can be delegated to AI. No nation or group has the right to use AI to carry out genocide, terrorism, torture, or other war crimes.

Genesis 4:10; Isaiah 1:16-17; Psalm 37:28; Matthew 5:44; 22:37-39; Romans 13:4

Article 9: Security

We affirm that AI has legitimate applications in policing, intelligence, surveillance, investigation, and other uses supporting the government’s responsibility to respect human rights, to protect and preserve human life, and to pursue justice in a flourishing society.

We deny that AI should be employed for safety and security applications in ways that seek to dehumanize, depersonalize, or harm our fellow human beings. We condemn the use of AI to suppress free expression or other basic human rights granted by God to all human beings.

Romans 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:13-14

Article 8: Data & Privacy

We affirm that privacy and personal property are intertwined individual rights and choices that should not be violated by governments, corporations, nation-states, and other groups, even in the pursuit of the common good. While God knows all things, it is neither wise nor obligatory to have every detail of one’s life open to society.

We deny the manipulative and coercive uses of data and AI in ways that are inconsistent with the love of God and love of neighbor. Data collection practices should conform to ethical guidelines that uphold the dignity of all people. We further deny that consent, even informed consent, although requisite, is the only necessary ethical standard for the collection, manipulation, or exploitation of personal data—individually or in the aggregate. AI should not be employed in ways that distort truth through the use of generative applications. Data should not be mishandled, misused, or abused for sinful purposes to reinforce bias, strengthen the powerful, or demean the weak.

Exodus 20:15, Psalm 147:5; Isaiah 40:13-14; Matthew 10:16 Galatians 6:2; Hebrews 4:12-13; 1 John 1:7 

Article 7: Work

We affirm that work is part of God’s plan for human beings participating in the cultivation and stewardship of creation. The divine pattern is one of labor and rest in healthy proportion to each other. Our view of work should not be confined to commercial activity; it must also include the many ways that human beings serve each other through their efforts. AI can be used in ways that aid our work or allow us to make fuller use of our gifts. The church has a Spirit-empowered responsibility to help care for those who lose jobs and to encourage individuals, communities, employers, and governments to find ways to invest in the development of human beings and continue making vocational contributions to our lives together.

We deny that human worth and dignity is reducible to an individual’s economic contributions to society alone. Humanity should not use AI and other technological innovations as a reason to move toward lives of pure leisure even if greater social wealth creates such possibilities.

Genesis 1:27; 2:5; 2:15; Isaiah 65:21-24; Romans 12:6-8; Ephesians 4:11-16

Article 6: Sexuality

We affirm the goodness of God’s design for human sexuality which prescribes the sexual union to be an exclusive relationship between a man and a woman in the lifelong covenant of marriage.

We deny that the pursuit of sexual pleasure is a justification for the development or use of AI, and we condemn the objectification of humans that results from employing AI for sexual purposes. AI should not intrude upon or substitute for the biblical expression of sexuality between a husband and wife according to God’s design for human marriage.

Genesis 1:26-29; 2:18-25; Matthew 5:27-30; 1 Thess 4:3-4

Article 5: Bias

We affirm that, as a tool created by humans, AI will be inherently subject to bias and that these biases must be accounted for, minimized, or removed through continual human oversight and discretion. AI should be designed and used in such ways that treat all human beings as having equal worth and dignity. AI should be utilized as a tool to identify and eliminate bias inherent in human decision-making.

We deny that AI should be designed or used in ways that violate the fundamental principle of human dignity for all people. Neither should AI be used in ways that reinforce or further any ideology or agenda, seeking to subjugate human autonomy under the power of the state.

Micah 6:8; John 13:34; Galatians 3:28-29; 5:13-14; Philippians 2:3-4; Romans 12:10

Article 4: Medicine

We affirm that AI-related advances in medical technologies are expressions of God’s common grace through and for people created in His image and that these advances will increase our capacity to provide enhanced medical diagnostics and therapeutic interventions as we seek to care for all people. These advances should be guided by basic principles of medical ethics, including beneficence, non-maleficence, autonomy, and justice, which are all consistent with the biblical principle of loving our neighbor.

We deny that death and disease—effects of the Fall—can ultimately be eradicated apart from Jesus Christ. Utilitarian applications regarding healthcare distribution should not override the dignity of human life. Fur- 3 thermore, we reject the materialist and consequentialist worldview that understands medical applications of AI as a means of improving, changing, or completing human beings.

Matthew 5:45; John 11:25-26; 1 Corinthians 15:55-57; Galatians 6:2; Philippians 2:4

Article 3: Relationship of AI & Humanity

We affirm the use of AI to inform and aid human reasoning and moral decision-making because it is a tool that excels at processing data and making determinations, which often mimics or exceeds human ability. While AI excels in data-based computation, technology is incapable of possessing the capacity for moral agency or responsibility.

We deny that humans can or should cede our moral accountability or responsibilities to any form of AI that will ever be created. Only humanity will be judged by God on the basis of our actions and that of the tools we create. While technology can be created with a moral use in view, it is not a moral agent. Humans alone bear the responsibility for moral decision making.

Romans 2:6-8; Galatians 5:19-21; 2 Peter 1:5-8; 1 John 2:1

Article 2: AI as Technology

We affirm that the development of AI is a demonstration of the unique creative abilities of human beings. When AI is employed in accordance with God’s moral will, it is an example of man’s obedience to the divine command to steward creation and to honor Him. We believe in innovation for the glory of God, the sake of human flourishing, and the love of neighbor. While we acknowledge the reality of the Fall and its consequences on human nature and human innovation, technology can be used in society to uphold human dignity. As a part of our God-given creative nature, human beings should develop and harness technology in ways that lead to greater flourishing and the alleviation of human suffering.

We deny that the use of AI is morally neutral. It is not worthy of man’s hope, worship, or love. Since the Lord Jesus alone can atone for sin and reconcile humanity to its Creator, technology such as AI cannot fulfill humanity’s ultimate needs. We further deny the goodness and benefit of any application of AI that devalues or degrades the dignity and worth of another human being. 

Genesis 2:25; Exodus 20:3; 31:1-11; Proverbs 16:4; Matthew 22:37-40; Romans 3:23

Article 1: Image of God

We affirm that God created each human being in His image with intrinsic and equal worth, dignity, and moral agency, distinct from all creation, and that humanity’s creativity is intended to reflect God’s creative pattern.

We deny that any part of creation, including any form of technology, should ever be used to usurp or subvert the dominion and stewardship which has been entrusted solely to humanity by God; nor should technology be assigned a level of human identity, worth, dignity, or moral agency.

Genesis 1:26-28; 5:1-2; Isaiah 43:6-7; Jeremiah 1:5; John 13:34; Colossians 1:16; 3:10; Ephesians 4:24