“Religious Liberty” Commissioner’s Attack on Separation of Church and State Shows Dangerous Intent to Repress Constitutional Freedoms

At a hearing this week of President Trump’s “Religious Liberty Commission”, the commission’s chair, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, said that “the separation of church and state is the biggest lie that’s been told in America since our founding.”

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Interfaith Alliance is currently leading a lawsuit of diverse faith organizations challenging the unlawful creation of the so-called Religious Liberty Commission, pointing to violations of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and the unbalanced and biased viewpoints assembled for the panel.

Interfaith Alliance’s president and CEO Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush released the following response to Patrick’s comments:

“By attacking the separation of church and state as a ‘lie,’ Patrick has made obvious what this commission is really about – not protecting religious freedom for all Americans, but using the power of the federal government to infringe upon and suppress it. The Trump Administration packed this commission with hand-picked Christian nationalists like Patrick so that they could advance a narrow religious worldview that does not respect the right of all Americans to practice their own faiths and beliefs free from government interference.

“In a week when the President insulted Christians with a profane post on Easter, attacked the Pope for expressing his religious beliefs and then posting an image that many Christians considered blasphemous, it is stunning that the Religious Commission chose to ignore these offenses – and instead to double down on their extreme and unpopular agenda.

“The majority of religious Americans believe in true religious liberty as guaranteed by our Constitution, and we won’t let Donald Trump or Dan Patrick take it away from us. We refuse to let them erase our country’s true history of religious tolerance and diversity. While President Trump may have dropped the Commission’s original leader Pam Bondi, we won’t be dropping our lawsuit – we’re taking this biased, discriminatory commission all the way to court.” 

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About Interfaith Alliance

‍‍Interfaith Alliance and Interfaith Alliance Foundation are a network of people of diverse faiths and beliefs from across the country working together to build a resilient democracy and fulfill America's promise of religious freedom and civil rights not just for some, but for all. We mobilize powerful coalitions to challenge Christian nationalism and religious extremism, while fostering a better understanding of the healthy boundaries between religion and government. We advocate at all levels of government for an equitable and just America where the freedoms of belief and religious practice are protected, and where all persons are treated with dignity and have the opportunity to thrive. For more information, visit interfaithalliance.org.