Steny Hoyer: “I believe that no government on earth is powerful enough to exclude my God from any place that a person of faith raises…”

“I believe that no government on earth is powerful enough to exclude my God from any place that a person of faith raises their voice to pray to my God. I believe that faith is critical. But I also believe like the Act of Religious Toleration, passed in Maryland in 1643 by a Catholic colony concerned that the majority of Protestants in that colony would force them to practice the Protestant religion rather than the Catholic religion. Mr. Speaker, the concern here is to protect faith, to protect church, to protect those who choose to pray and who choose to worship in their own way. I believe that the first amendment was designed specifically for that purpose. Roger Williams, indeed a Baptist like me, was an antecedent to the creation of the first amendment. I believe that we do not need to amend this provision. But we do need to stress that faith in God and raising our voices in prayer continues to be one of the most important things that Americans can do.”