Religious Freedom

In Canada’s province of Québec, Bill 21, officially known as “An Act Respecting the Laicity of the State,” prohibits public servants in positions of authority — such as teachers, police officers, and government lawyers and judges — from wearing religious symbols at work. The law also extends the ban to staff at subsidized day cares, private schools and professional development centers.

A Catholic priest working for peace and reconciliation in the Central African Republic was killed by armed men near his residence in the town of Zemio on June 29.

Another Nicaraguan bishop remains missing after being apprehended by police, drawing a rebuke from the United States for the ongoing “attacks on religious freedom” in the increasingly authoritarian country.

The Department of Justice’s Religious Liberty Commission on June 26 presented a draft of its report to President Donald Trump, in the Oval Office

The Department of Justice has moved to become a co-plaintiff in a lawsuit against New York state filed by the Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne, who operate a 42-bed palliative care program for the dying poor.

As Pakistan’s religious minorities continue to face rights violations, that nation’s Catholic bishops are fostering hope the faithful can live out their faith with confidence.

A new report shows more countries saw spikes in religious hostility by individuals and groups in 2023, the last year for which data is available — with the rise attributable in part to harassment of religious minorities and the ongoing impact of the Israel-Hamas war.

There has been a sharp rise in reported harassment against Christians in Israel, according to new data presented June 4 by the Religious Freedom Data Center.