WASHINGTON, D.C., Nov. 19, 2020—The Religious Freedom Institute will present Dr. Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, with the 2020 Defender of Religious Freedom Award during a virtual ceremony, Nov. 21, from 7:00-7:30 p.m. ET.
RFI announced Moore as the recipient of this year’s award in September for his work to defend religious liberty for all people of faith.
The award will be presented by Robert P. George, McCormick professor of jurisprudence at Princeton University and past chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.
“Dr. Moore is a brilliant, winsome, and tireless advocate for religious liberty. Whether making his case from the pulpit, or in the pages of The New York Times, Dr. Moore finds a way to speak so others can listen,” said Thomas Farr, President of RFI.
RFI is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that gives the award each year to a person who “defends religious freedom for everyone, everywhere from within his or her faith tradition” and is presented on the occasion of the RFI Annual Dinner.
Moore comments on receiving the award:
“I am honored to accept this award from the Religious Freedom Institute, a group that I admire greatly and from whom I learn so much. RFI stands in the great tradition of those who believe, as I do, that God alone, and no actual or would-be Caesar, is lord of the conscience. This means commitment to religious liberty that is not about privileges for those who have the most votes or the most influence, but for all people. As Thomas Helwys reminded us, one’s standing before the Judgment Seat cannot be outsourced to any king or governor, and therefore the state should neither coerce nor restrain the conscience’s freedom to believe, to serve, and to worship. When we stand for freedom for everyone––no matter their religion or lack of religion––we are confessing that we believe there are realities more ultimate than the state, and that religion cannot be pretended into or out of existence by any bureaucrat or dictator. I am grateful for this award from RFI, and I look forward to working with them for years to come in this crucial struggle for freedom.”
RFI virtual ceremony attendees will hear from world-class speakers, learn more about key RFI initiatives and celebrate the significance of religious freedom. Details about virtual ceremony can be found here.
