Why Christians should speak up for all faiths

By The Rt Rev Philip Mounstephen, Bishop of Truro

I am convinced we should campaign for freedom of religion or belief not only for Christians, but also for followers of any religion, as well as for those holding non-religious beliefs such as atheism.

There are good reasons, both practically and theologically, for advocating for freedom of religion or belief for everyone everywhere. Although such advocacy has at times drawn criticism, I honestly cannot think of any biblical reason as to why it could be wrong.

‘Do good to all’

Galatians 6:10 says, ‘Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.’

Clearly, there is an emphasis in this verse on caring for our brothers and sisters in Christ. However, it cannot be used as an argument for us to be exclusive our support, precisely because it says, ‘let us do good to all people,’ before highlighting ‘those who belong to the family of believers’. It is entirely understandable for Christians to have a particular heart for our fellow believers who suffer. But ‘do good to all’ cannot be construed as meaning we should be exclusive in our concern.

Sharing the Good News

Another objection is that by advocating for freedom of religion or belief for everyone, we are guilty of treating every religion as the same. And the argument is extended to suggest that campaigning for everyone stands in the way of sharing our faith.

Central to my role as Chair of the Partnership for World Mission – the umbrella body which gathers together the Church of England’s various specialist mission agencies – is sharing the Gospel in word and deed throughout the world. I would argue that campaigning for freedom of religion or belief for everyone actually enables evangelism – by working towards a society in which sharing one’s faith freely with other people can occur without repercussions.

God-given free will

In Genesis 1 and 2 God does not create man as some kind of automaton. He gives Adam instructions, and those instructions presuppose the ability to choose whether or not to obey. Furthermore, the story of the New Testament is one of people making a free choice to follow Jesus. Indeed, there would be no Church at all if people did not have the freedom to choose to follow him.

No one, in the end, can be coerced into believing, and nor should anyone ever try to coerce them. I maintain that we have a God-given right to choose what and who we believe in. We must recognise that people have agency over their lives, and ensure that they have the freedom to make that choice – including choosing to commit to Christ.

Practical reasons: the platform for effective advocacy

In 2018 I was asked to lead a review into the way that the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office had responded to the issue of the persecution of Christians specifically. So one might wonder why I now advocate passionately for freedom of religion or belief for everyone.

Well, from the very start, I deliberately framed my justification for engaging in the work of the Review on the basis of freedom of religion and belief for everyone. One of the reasons I did that was because I knew that if my recommendations were to have traction in a liberal, plural society, I needed to make that commitment. But I think there are other reasons worth citing.

I argued that the suffering of Christians has been woefully overlooked, so a focus on the persecuted Church was deserved. But I also was very clear that this was not about special pleading for Christians. Rather, it was about ensuring that Christians, in the global south particularly, received a fair share of the government’s attention, concern and assistance.

Indeed, I also argued that because Christianity is perhaps the one truly global faith, it has become what you might call a bellwether for repression more generally – if Christians are experiencing discrimination t in one context or another, you can be certain that other minorities are too.

The answer lies in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Ultimately it is Jesus who calls us to advocate for freedom of religion or belief for everyone.

In the parable of the Good Samaritan Jesus does something very radical, by defining our ’neighbour’ in the widest possible terms. Our neighbour is not just the one who is near us and like us, but is also the one who is distant and different from us. And it is these people that he calls us to love and to serve.

And think too about the cross – God’s loving, heartbreaking embrace of all humanity in our wretchedness, as Jesus bears the weight of the whole world’s sin on his shoulders.

God so loved the world (John 3:16); all its peoples, everywhere, at all times. Therefore, I choose to stand up for freedom of religion or belief for everyone, without fear or favour, to express with all I am the breadth of God’s love; and indeed to ensure that all people everywhere have the opportunity to hear of this love, and are afforded the choice of finding liberty, life and love in him.

Watch

This article is an excerpt from our webinar series ‘Why Christians should speak up for all faiths’, available at youtube.com/csw_uk