Editorial

Will March 8, 2004, be remembered as the day Iraq enshrined freedom of conscience in its constitution or will future Iraqis look back on this day with deep remorse as a time of ephemeral promise destroyed by Islamic rejection of authentic and vibrant religious liberty?

The historic ceremony of the Iraqi Governing Council's 25 members unanimously signing its interim constitution causes me to wonder if among those Muslim leaders there is a modern-day James Madison or two who will champion religious freedom as an inalienable right in the new Iraq as Madison did at America's founding. Or will the provisions in the interim constitution which seem to protect freedom of conscience fail to remain when the nation is scheduled to ratify its permanent constitution late next year?

The heart-breaking news that four Southern Baptist aid workers were ruthlessly murdered and one other was injured in a March 15 drive-by shooting in Mosul, Iraq, brings into sharp relief the critical need for bona fide religious freedom protections in the new government of this war-torn nation. These Christian martyrs - joining the four other Southern Baptists who have died in service of their Lord in just over one year - are stark reminders of the cost of following Christ in places that do not respect freedom of conscience.

Two months before the signing ceremony a symbol of hope for freedom of conscience in this infant democracy - as well as its great need - could be seen in a Jan. 16 dedication service for the first-ever Baptist church in Iraq. More than 700 Iraqis participated in the event at the National Evangelical Baptist Church in Baghdad. The larger-than-expected turnout for the service was taken as a sign of hope for the future among the leaders of the Baptist Union of Iraq. [Click here for story].

The pressing question for Christians and other religious minorities in Iraq - as well as concerned believers around the world - is whether the interim constitution (known as the "Transitional Administrative Law") provisions protecting religious liberty will find their way into the permanent constitution to be enacted by the nation's first democratically elected National Assembly by Aug. 15, 2005, and later ratified by the people in a national referendum no later than Oct. 15, 2005.

Although the TAL includes multiple statements protecting religious freedom, the fact that the document requires that legislation not be contrary to the "universally agreed upon tenets of Islam" should be cause for real concern. The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom - whose membership includes Southern Baptist leader Richard Land - praised the TAL, while noting that the provision about Islam "could be used by judges to abridge the internationally recognized human rights of political and social reformers," including religious minorities.

The USCIRF also said in its March 8 news release, "Without effective protections of fundamental rights and freedoms for each individual in Iraq, reformers could all too easily be the targets of unjust accusations of religious 'crimes' such as apostasy and blasphemy, backed by the force of law."

Indeed, The New York Times reported that 12 of the 13 Shiite leaders on the Council issued a statement after the ceremony noting that their signatures were predicated upon the intention to change certain features before the new charter becomes effective at the end of June.

"We say here, our decision to sign the document is pegged to reservations," said Ibrahim Jafari, a leading Shiite member on the Council. Shiites are the majority Islamic sect in Iraq.

Pyrrhic victory?

If the rights protected in the TAL are absent in the permanent constitution or if those freedoms are not enforced as a matter of governmental practice, then the victory over Sadaam Hussein may have proven to be a Pyrrhic one for America. It's not an exaggeration to say that without permanent guarantees of religious freedom in Iraq that American blood and lives will have been spent for a dubious cause.

The United States, starting with President George W. Bush, has a critical role to play in fighting for religious liberty in Iraq. USCIRF Chairman Michael Young notes, "The U.S. government should in public remarks and private meetings use its influence to ensure the observance by Iraqi authorities of international norms of protection for individual rights as affirmed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights."

Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights affirms, "Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance."

Although the role of President Bush and the American government is significant, the United States alone cannot guarantee the protection of religious freedom in the absence of Iraqi leaders who will sacrificially champion those rights for themselves and their posterity.

Desperately needed at this critical juncture in Iraqi history are some Muslim equivalents of colonial American patriot James Madison. The Founding Father most responsible for our constitution and champion of the Bill of Rights, Madison - although a member of the governmentally established religion of his state - understood the fundamental importance of religious liberty for minorities in guaranteeing the success of the American experiment in democracy.

The Iraqi James Madisons - as adherents to the majority religion of their nation - would acknowledge the critical importance of enshrining the fundamental liberty under which America has thrived. Religious freedom cannot be made subservient to other laws, especially extreme versions of Islamic law that do not tolerate and often persecutes - sometimes even to death - non-Muslims.

Are there Muslims in Iraq who will relentlessly advocate the cause of freedom of conscience for non-Muslims, recognizing - like James Madison - that religious freedom is an indispensable core element without which this infant democracy will not long last?

Today's American Muslim James Madisons?

Also of critical need are prominent American Muslim James Madisons. Since 9/11 Muslim organizations have complained loudly about actual and perceived infringements of their religious freedom in the wake of the terrorist assaults on our nation. Organizations like the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) have gone to great trouble to catalog every abuse claim (including unfounded ones like the one attacking Southern Baptist leader Jerry Vines because he criticized the theological claims of Islam).

While CAIR has defended aggressively the liberty of conscience rights of American Muslims, they seem to be silent about the matter of religious freedoms for non-Muslims in Iraq. I searched the CAIR Web site without success attempting to find even one news release or statement calling for religious freedom for Iraq's religious minorities. It seems this premier American Muslim organization has little regard for defending the religious freedom of Christians around the world even while it rightfully enjoys such freedom in championing Islam in America.

In fact, CAIR has undertaken an aggressive and sophisticated PR campaign to demonstrate that U.S. Muslims are patriotic citizens who are playing meaningful roles throughout American society. Its recent "Islam in America" Madison Avenue-style advertising effort sought to "foster greater understanding of Islam and to counter a rising tide of anti-Muslim rhetoric in the United States."

Fair enough. I do not begrudge in the least the efforts of American Muslims to protect their constitutional right to practice their faith. Further, I gladly defend the rights afforded by the First Amendment to all Americans, including Muslims. But where are the Islamic adherents in our land who will defend the fundamental religious freedom rights of Christians in Iraq?

In announcing the opening of a new affiliate in Tampa this month (and the second in the Sunshine State), CAIR-FL Board Chairman Parvez Ahmed said the office will strengthen the organization's "ability to empower the Florida Muslim community, defend civil rights and promote inter-religious tolerance." Might Mr. Ahmed be a modern-day American Muslim James Madison who will champion religious freedom for Christians in Iraq - and the rest of the Islamic world?

Baptists advocate religious freedom for all

It's no small fact of history that it was the persecuted Baptist minority of colonial Virginia who played a pivotal role in helping James Madison to see the need for protecting religious freedom in our founding constitution.

Baptists have always believed - and were pioneers in advocating it for all people - that true religion is uncoerced and that all men must be free to make their own decisions about matters of faith. Not the state, not the church, not the family - but every individual as an image-bearer of God must decide what he or she believes. Baptists demand religious freedom for ourselves, as well as for those with whom our conscience requires we must disagree if we are to be true to our Savior and Lord.

The religious liberty concerns about Iraq can be applied to the situation in Afghanistan whose leaders are also in the process of building a new government after America's defeat of the oppressive Taliban regime. Religious freedom also must be enshrined in Afghanistan's fundamental laws if its liberation is to have meaningful effect for all Afghan citizens.

Lauding his administration's efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan in a March 11 address to the annual convention of the National Association of Evangelicals, President Bush correctly noted, "Yet I know that liberty is not America's gift to the world - liberty and freedom are God's gift to every man and woman who lives in this world."

Amen and Amen. Let us pray for the emergence of James Madisons of our day in Iraq and Afghanistan (and America) who will champion religious freedom for Christians and other religious minorities in those fledgling democracies, recognizing this fundamental human right - given by God to all peoples - must be enshrined and celebrated in their founding documents. As God has blessed America with such guarantees, let us pray for His blessing on Iraqi and Afghani leaders, that they may duplicate the legacy of American patriot James Madison.