Southern Baptists recognize the importance of religious liberty, which is the preeminent right included by our Founders in the Constitution. The Baptist Faith & Message states “a free church in a free state is the Christian ideal, and this implies the right of free and unhindered access to God on the part of all men, and the right to form and propagate opinions in the sphere of religion without interference by the civil power.” Stretching back generations, Southern Baptists have a rich heritage of affirming the importance of and fighting to maintain protections for religious liberty for people of all faiths, while acknowledging that God extends salvation to all who believe and actively working to share the gospel with all.
In 1993, the near-unanimous passage of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) by Congress ushered in a new certainty in religious liberty protections by the federal government. The RFRA ensures that in cases where the federal government is exerting a requirement upon religious and faith-based employees and employers, the government must meet the highest standards of scrutiny instead of forcing employees and faith-based employers to needlessly sacrifice their deeply held religious convictions. RFRA also provides individuals with a right to private action, thereby holding the federal government accountable for violations of these protections.
Despite the bipartisan origin of RFRA, in recent years, there has been a concerted push to undermine RFRA’s effectiveness through federal rulemaking and legislative proposals, often in an effort to promote harmful “gender ideology.” While RFRA protections remain strong, some legislators from both parties include exemptions to RFRA in proposed bills, meaning that RFRA would not apply to new statutes created. Additionally, in federal rulemaking, there is a push to override religious liberty protections by intentionally misrepresenting the beliefs of some groups; for example, on Nove. 27, 2023, the ERLC submitted public comments in response to a Health and Human Services proposed rule that would require states placing children in foster care to not place LGBTQ-identifying children with faith-based agencies that were not affirming.
The ERLC continues to advocate against any attempts to weaken or undermine RFRA protections and on behalf of the concerns of Southern Baptists who depend on RFRA to live out their beliefs in service to others.
