Bishop Robert Barron of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, announced on May 1 that he has been appointed to the White House's Commission on Religious Liberty.
"I am grateful to President Trump for appointing me to serve on the Commission on Religious Liberty. Freedom of religion in our country has been a central concern of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops for decades, and I see my task as bringing the perspective of Catholic social teaching to bear as the Commission endeavors to shape public policy in this matter," said Bishop Barron in a post shared on his Facebook page.
Barron is well known as the founder of the global media apostolate Word on Fire. He is currently a member of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' religious liberty committee.
"In assuming this responsibility, I take as my model Fr. Theodore Hesburgh, the legendary president of the University of Notre Dame from 1952 to 1987," said the bishop.
Hesbergh, he explained, "served on sixteen separate presidential commissions over several decades in both Republican and Democrat administrations."
"I ask you to pray for me as I commence this important work," said Barron.
Established by Trump the same day
President Donald Trump established the Religious Liberty Commission via an executive order on May 1, the same day. The goal of the commission, said the order, is "to safeguard and promote America’s founding principle of religious freedom."
Others on the commission are from "diverse religious and professional backgrounds, including clergy, legal experts, academics, and public advocates."
"The Commission is tasked with producing a comprehensive report on the foundations of religious liberty in America, strategies to increase awareness of and celebrate America’s peaceful religious pluralism, current threats to religious liberty, and strategies to preserve and enhance protections for future generations," said the executive order.
Among the key focuses of the report, said the order, include "parental rights in religious education, school choice, conscience protections, attacks on houses of worship, free speech for religious entities, and institutional autonomy."
The new commission is part of the White House Faith Office, which was established in February by an executive order.
Not the only group
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) issues an annual report on religious freedom around the world.
USCIRF is a creation of the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) is a 1998 law that aims to promote religious freedom as a U.S. foreign policy priority.
