[W]ords must be followed with actions. President Obama must "walk the talk." During his presidency, the president has focused on other issues at the expense of religious freedom and other human rights, not only in this country, but also abroad.
Source/Credit: Christian Post | Guest Contributors
By Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein & Dr. David Curry,
Posted: February 14, 2014
In 1953, the National Prayer Breakfast was founded by Abraham Vereide during Dwight D. Eisenhower's first year as president. The event was designed to bring political, religious and social leaders together to celebrate one of the foundational values in America – freedom of religion.
Throughout the years, every president has attended the National Prayer Breakfast. There have been some keynote speakers, such as Mother Teresa, Tony Blair and Bono.
There have been many notable National Prayer Breakfast events over the years. However, we assert that this could possibly be one of the more significant National Prayer Breakfasts thus far. Why? Because President Obama's speech was focused on freedom of religion; not just in the United States, but around the globe.
"History shows that nations that uphold the rights of their people, including the freedom of religion, are ultimately more just and more peaceful and more successful," he said. "Nations that do not uphold these rights sow the bitter seeds of instability and violence and extremism."
The president went on to talk about how there are many nations which are not upholding this basic human right. He spoke about minority groups facing persecution for their faith, such as the Baha'i in Iran, Christian Coptics in Egypt and Ahmadiyya Muslims in Pakistan. He acknowledged that we as a nation must continue to stand for the rights of all people to practice their faiths in peace and freedom, and that the U.S. stands against the ugly tide of anti-Semitism that rears its ugly head all too often.
Some might argue that this speech was just that – a speech. We argue that when the president speaks, many listen, as his platform holds a great deal of weight. Words can influence the actions of other nations, as we have seen throughout history.
However, words must be followed with actions. President Obama must "walk the talk." During his presidency, the president has focused on other issues at the expense of religious freedom and other human rights, not only in this country, but also abroad. Also, for years the Obama administration and other parts of the government refused to classify the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram, which operates in Nigeria and its neighboring countries, as an official terrorist organization, despite the urging of many advocacy groups. In 2012, the president announced the creation of the Atrocities Prevention Board at a speech at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. This group was charged with ensuring that there would be no more genocides. But we have seen little come from the group, despite the mass carnage in Sudan and elsewhere.
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