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Individuals and groups have issued many statements promoting religious
freedom. They don't have the authority of federal constitutions, state
constitutions, and international
conventions. However, they have been influential The following excerpts are taken from a variety of such documents.
 | Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (France, 1789) |
| Declaration of the Parliament of the World's Religions |
| Declaration by the Pope Paul IV on Religious Freedom (Dignitatis Humanae) |
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DECLARATION OF THE RIGHTS OF MAN AND OF THE CITIZEN:
| Written by The Marquis de Lafayette, with help from Thomas Jefferson. |
| Approved by the National Assembly of France, August 26, 1789 |
| Signed into law by French King Louis XVI (under duress) |
| Had little effect, because of the French Revolution that followed. |
Selected references related to religious freedom:
4. Liberty consists in the freedom to do everything which injures no one else;
hence the exercise of the natural rights of each man has no limits except those which
assure to the other members of the society the enjoyment of the same rights. These limits
can only be determined by law.
10. No one shall be disquieted on account of his opinions, including his religious views, provided their manifestation does not disturb the public order established by law.
11. The free communication of ideas and opinions is one of the most precious of the rights of man. Every citizen may, accordingly, speak, write, and print with freedom, but shall be responsible for such abuses of this freedom as shall be defined by law.
[Extracted from a document by Gerald Murphy (The Cleveland Free-Net - aa300) Distributed by the Cybercasting Services Division of the National Public Telecomputing Network (NPTN)].
DECLARATION OF THE PARLIAMENT OF THE WORLD'S RELIGIONS:
Given at the 1993 Parliament of the World's Religions, 1993-SEP-4, in Chicago, IL:
Section III contains a series of irrevocable directives. Excerpts dealing with religious tolerance include:
| 1. Commitment to a Culture of Non-violence and Respect for Life.
| ||||
| 3. Commitment to a Culture of Tolerance and a Life of Truthfulness. "Numberless women and men of all regions and religions strive to lead lives of honesty and truthfulness. Nevertheless, all over the world we find endless lies, and deceit, swindling and hypocrisy, ideology and demagoguery:" "...[for example] representatives of religions who dismiss other religions as of little value and who preach fanaticism and intolerance instead of respect and understanding."
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DECLARATION ON RELIGIOUS FREEDOM (DIGNITATIS HUMANAE):
Proclaimed By His Holiness, Pope Paul VI on 1965-DEC-7
2. This Vatican Council declares that the human person has a right to religious freedom. This freedom means that all men are to be immune from coercion on the part of individuals or of social groups and of any human power, in such wise that no one is to be forced to act in a manner contrary to his own beliefs, whether privately or publicly, whether alone or in association with others within due limits.....
4. The freedom or immunity from coercion in matters religious which is the endowment of persons as individuals is also to be recognized as their right when they act in community. Religious communities are a requirement of the social nature both of man and of religion itself.... 2
References:
- Information on the 1993 Parliament of the World's Religions can be accessed at: http://www.silcom.com/~origin/csb2.html
- "Declaration on religious freedom: Dignitatis Humanae on the right of the person and of communities to social and civil freedom in matters religious promulgated by his Holiness Pope Paul VI on December 7, 1965," at: http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/
- Human Rights U.S.A. "educates people in the United States about their human rights and encourages community-based action." Their primary goal is to "demonstrate that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other human rights documents are as relevant to life in the U.S. as they are to life in other countries, and to improve the protection of human rights in American communities by increasing Americans’ awareness of these rights." See: http://www.hrusa.org/
Copyright © 1996, 1998, 2000 & 2002 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Latest update: 2002-JUN-17
Author: B.A. Robinson
Hyperlinks checked: 2002-JUN-17
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