CNN: Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush Responds to Trump's Religious Liberty Commission
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Analysis
It’s Simple: The National Prayer Breakfast Hurts Our Country
On February 6th, President Trump attended the National Prayer Breakfast—an annual event that already blurs state and religious lines and agendas—and gave remarks that should trouble every American.
The coordination of this event with the National Prayer Breakfast Foundation, which two senators co-chair, clearly disrespects the foundational principle of religious freedom that this country was built upon. The National Prayer Breakfast has a history of promoting divisive Christian nationalist visions, and President Trump’s endorsement of the event lends it an unwarranted legitimacy.
Trump used exclusive religious rhetoric to support one kind of Christianity, furthering the idea that Christian nationalism is a welcome part of our government and society. Trump proudly raised his hands and stated that “Americans are reasserting our true identity as a people ordained by God” and went on to say that America is a nation that “trusts in the Providence of an Almighty God”. The United States is a country composed of people from diverse faiths as well as those with no religious affiliation. By failing to recognize this and upholding only one religious viewpoint, Trump disrespects the religious diversity of this nation.
After Trump finished his prayers, he quickly moved into action and boasted of his administration’s plan to create a new task force. This task force, led by the US Attorney General, aims to seek out supposedly rampant “anti-Christian bias” across our government and society. While this task force will operate under the guise of religious freedom, many political and religious leaders are worried that bigotry, invasions of privacy, and discrimination will ensue.
Interfaith Alliance believes that the National Prayer Breakfast clearly violates the separation of church and state and does not honor the true spirit of religious freedom. Our elected officials have a civic duty not to hold one religion as more significant than others, as done in the National Prayer Breakfast. We must reject all attempts to use religious rhetoric to justify oppressive policy and stay vigilant in the protection of religious freedom and separation of church and state.
Rosa Casey-Teeley is a Policy Intern at Interfaith Alliance.
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Mahmoud Khalil’s deportation case has alarming implications
Earlier this year, during the holy month of Ramadan, ICE agents followed Columbia graduate student Mahmoud Khalil home after he broke his fast and forcibly detained him without a warrant. Khalil, a Palestinian activist, was then disappeared into an unmarked vehicle and taken to an unknown location as his pregnant wife watched and pleaded for information. It was later revealed that Khalil had been moved to a detention center in Jena, Louisiana, where he faced deportation. He was held for over three months in poor conditions, missing his graduation and the birth of his first child.
True Religious Freedom Means Protecting Our Faith Leaders, Not Detaining Them
In early July, Ayman Soliman, a former Cincinnati Children’s Hospital chaplain, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after his asylum status was terminated in June. In response, local faith leaders organized a prayer vigil, rally, and peaceful march; during the march at least 15 protesters were detained by local police and charged with felony rioting.
What Project 2025 Tells Us the Trump Administration Will do Next to Limit Access to Reproductive Healthcare
Project 2025 is a federal policy blueprint published in 2023 by then-former Trump administration officials and far right policy professionals, organized by The Heritage Foundation. The 920-page document outlines a detailed policy agenda designed to establish an authoritarian government while curbing civil rights protections. In particular, it is interested in restricting access to abortions and other forms of reproductive healthcare.