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Reflections on Silence

The following presentation was given as part of a 2017 adult education series offered at St. Thomas Parish, Peoria Heights, IL.

The history of the Church gives us many examples in which the liberty and autonomy of the Catholic Church has not always been protected or guaranteed. Learning from history, we must always be vigilant to secure those freedoms that we hold dear. The United States is unique in that our Constitution incorporates a fundamental guarantee of religious freedom. Even so, court precedence has elaborated the legal limits of that freedom. More recently, efforts have sought to impose additional limits on the religious freedom of a Catholic institution or individual believers. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is affirmatively engaged in efforts to protect these rights as found in the Constitution. A better understanding of these issues can help us know what part we can play in safeguarding the religious freedom of all in this country.

Presentation text (pdf file)
Audio file (mp3 file)