News July 2008

New Religious Freedom Report Released

The Religious Freedom World Report for 2006-2007 was recently released as a joint project of the Public Affairs and Religious Liberty department of the General Conference and the International Religious Liberty Institute of Andrews University. 

The Report, which is published bi-annually, gives an account of the status of religious freedom in every country in the world, with a special focus on the Adventist experience.  The report ranks each country on a scale of one to five regarding its religious freedom record. “One” represents countries that have full freedom, and “five” represents the most oppressive states.  The report gives a general account of the legal, political, and social climate of each country in regards to religious freedom.  It also gives details as to the Adventist experience in each country. 

Nicholas Miller, managing editor of the report, says that the details about the Adventist experience are useful for outsiders as well as the church because Adventism’s minority status makes them a good indicator of the health of religious freedom in a country.  “Like the proverbial canary in the coal mine,” said Miller, “the treatment of Adventists can signal the general state of religious freedom in a country.”

The general editor, John Graz, notes that in “many countries around the world, being a member of a religious minority is a crime.”  Despite this, Graz says, “the main positive factor is that religious freedom exists in a majority of the countries of the world.”  The report, with the ranking of countries and the details of the treatment of Adventists, can be accessed at www.parl.gc.adventist.org.

TOP