Political Quotes

“as lead sponsor of this resolution, I rise in strong support of House Resolution 515, a resolution condemning the persecution of Christians around the world. First, I want to thank Representative Bill Gilman, chairman of the House International Relations Committee and Representatives Chris Smith and Tom Lantos, chairman and ranking member respectively of the Subcommittees on International Operations and Human Rights, for their support of the resolution and their help in getting this measure through committee in such a short time. I commend the House leadership for bringing this timely resolution to the floor this week. I also want to thank Michael Horowitz of the Hudson Institute and Nina Shea of the Puebla Program of Freedom House for their leadership on this issue. Michael and Nina have worked tirelessly in the past year sensitizing the American Christian community about Christian persecution and encouraging action. I appreciate their hard work and their commitment to this compelling issue, which has been an important one for me for some time. Mr. Speaker, religious persecution did not disappear with the cold war. It is very much alive today. In many countries around the world, people of faith are forced to endure severe persecution because they choose to worship Jesus Christ or adhere to the teachings of the Buddha dharma or practice the teachings of the Baha'u'lla (as in the case of the Bahai's) or otherwise practice their faith.”