Several members of the American episcopate as well as a Catholic priest were added to the White House’s Religious Liberty Commission, the White House announced in a statement on Friday, May 16.
Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco, Bishop Thomas Paprocki of Springfield, Illinois, and Bishop Kevin Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana, along with Fr. Thomas Ferguson, were named to the list of the commission’s “Advisory Board of Religious Leaders.”
Ferguson is the pastor of Good Shepherd Parish in Alexandria, Virginia, and is the author of Catholic and American: The Political Theology of John Courtney Murray, said the release.
Cordileone’s appointment to the advisory board was announced by the Archdiocese of San Francisco in a May 15 statement.
“Religious liberty is a critical issue in our time that needs to be defended and addressed,” said Archbishop Cordileone in the archdiocese’s statement.
“I am happy to join my brother bishops in providing a Catholic voice on this important topic at a national level,” he added.
Neither the Diocese of Springfield nor the Diocese of Ft. Wayne-South Bend have released statements regarding the advisory board.
Multi-faith board
The “Advisory Board of Religious Leaders” is an interfaith group. Other members of the board include Archbishop Elpidophoros, the Greek Orthodox archbishop of America, several rabbis, and two Protestant pastors.
The two other advisory boards for the Religious Liberty Commission are the “Advisory Board of Legal Experts,” and the “Advisory Board of Lay Leaders.”
The Religious Liberty Commission was established on May 1 via an executive order from President Donald Trump. The commission is led by Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick as chair and Dr. Ben Carson as vice chair, plus an additional 11 commission members.
Cardinal Timothy Dolan, archbishop of New York, and Bishop Robert Barron of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, are two of the commissioners.
Commission goals
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.
