This year, we must truly defend freedom of religion, conscience and belief

This time of year is always a welcome opportunity to reflect on what is most important — both in our private lives but also in the shared life of our nation. As we welcome 2023, the search for a common cause that somehow might bridge our great divides becomes more earnest, and yet can feel more elusive than ever.

For the past few years, we have proudly worked together on just such a worthy and unifying cause: religious freedom for everyone, everywhere, all the time.

We fully understand that in the domestic context, the words “religious freedom” are often accompanied by scare quotes and are likely to send partisans to their respective barricades with no armistice in sight. But remarkably, the cause of International Religious Freedom, or IRF, brings disparate communities together to defend freedom of religion, conscience and belief for the billions of people who live in places where this fundamental right is routinely trampled upon.

What do we mean by freedom of religion, conscience and belief? Nothing more or less than the profound right of all people to live their lives in accordance with the dictates of their own conscience. This belief is embedded in the very DNA of the great American experiment, and it is an essential component of human dignity and human rights. IRF advocates are as robust in their defense of the rights of humanists and atheists in Iran or Saudi Arabia as they are in advocating for persecuted Christians, Ahmadis, Bahais, Muslim Uyghurs and all others who face discrimination for their beliefs.

Because of our shared passion for defending this wellspring human right, for the past two years we have convened a major international gathering — the IRF Summit in Washington — to bring together experts, lawmakers, activists, survivors, advocates and leaders to educate, elevate and advance the cause of religious freedom in every corner of the world. This year, the summit will be held Jan. 31-Feb. 1.

The two of us embody the unifying nature of this cause. One of us is a prominent Republican political leader who most recently served as Ambassador at Large for Religious Freedom. The other is a lifelong Democrat and past chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). There are plenty of things we disagree about, but we sing from the same hymnal when it comes to defending the conscience rights of all. Notably, our own bipartisanship is far from unique in this sphere. At our previous IRF Summits we have been honored to be addressed by leaders as disparate as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. In many contexts, this might seem like a minor miracle. In the cause of international religious freedom, such miracles happen all the time.

In fact, one of the most remarkable and uplifting aspects of the IRF Summits has been watching often adversarial groups advocate for each other: Muslims speaking out against antisemitism, Christians defending the rights of their Muslim brothers and sisters, Secular Humanists advocating for the rights of their religious friends and neighbors, and vice versa. This is the power of freedom of religion, conscience and belief in action — and it is inspiring to witness.

This year, we will convene the third IRF Summit immediately preceding the National Prayer Breakfast. We anticipate that this will be the most consequential summit to date, involving participants from dozens of countries and virtually every belief community in the world. As members of Congress settle in for what likely will be two adversarial years in narrowly divided chambers, we urge them to seek out those areas where there is still room for agreement and collaboration — among them, international religious freedom. 

The IRF community is growing each day, and the only requirement to join is a firm belief in the importance of this fundamental human right. We hope members of Congress, the Biden administration, and civil society will take up this cause with greater resolve and unity in the year ahead.

Sam Brownback is the former U.S. Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom and co-chair of the IRF Summit. Follow him on Twitter @SamuelBrownback.

Katrina Lantos Swett is president of the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice, a former chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, and co-chair of the IRF Summit. Follow her on Twitter @LantosSwettK.