Religious Freedom
We suggest:
- Religious freedom is foundational to a vibrant pluralism and functioning democracy.
- Canadians have constitutionally guaranteed freedoms of conscience and religion, of thought, belief, opinion, and expression, and of association.
- Canadians should exercise these freedoms in their private lives and in the public square, without fear and “subject only to such reasonable limits prescribed by law as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society” (Charter).
- The Crown, legislatures, media, professional associations, and other institutions should recognize, affirm, and respect these freedoms.
Supporting Research
Start Here
April 3, 2020
This paper aims to provide a historical context for why freedom of religion and conscience is foundational to Canadian democracy, diversity, pluralism, and to our common life as human beings living in this place, this Canada.
Andrew P.W. Bennett,
Aaron Neil
October 28, 2019
“Know thyself.”
This ancient Greek maxim is popular today, but also widely misunderstood. Self knowledge goes deeper than awareness of your likes, dislikes, and personal interests. To know who you are, is to know what you are.
What kind of being am I? What does it mean to be human? Do I have dignity? Who Are You? Reaffirming Human Dignity from the Cardus Religious Freedom Institute will help you answer these questions.
Andrew P.W. Bennett
May 2, 2023
The Bible is central to Christianity, but do Canadian Christians actually read and know their own scriptures? Produced with the generous support of the Canadian Bible Society, this report tries to answer that question through Cardus's work with the Angus Reid Institute surveying Canadians on their engagement with sacred texts.
Special Projects
Anglosphere Project
Welcome to the Anglosphere Project! This project seeks to educate citizens about the long history of religious freedom in the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada. We hope to reaffirm the centrality of this fundamental freedom to our institutions and to our common life as citizens.
Browse the timeline now: https://religiousfoundation.org/
Explorations
June 22, 2021
Join us as we Exit COVID: Toward what matters most.
Andrew P.W. Bennett
June 10, 2021
The killing of a Muslim family in the southwestern Ontario city demands empathy for the victims, but also renewed commitment to freedom of faith, Father Deacon Andrew Bennett writes.
Ray Pennings
May 31, 2021
After last week’s online National Prayer Breakfast, Cardus Executive Vice President Ray Pennings reflected in his weekly Insights newsletter on how to pray in public – and pluralistic – spaces. Convivium reprints his text.
Media Coverage
May 5, 2023
"I think it's important to have our monarch having even someone above him, that being God, that he also has to report to—someone that is a higher authority than even him," says Andrew Bennett, faith communities program director for Cardus, in this CBC News story about the Canadian government's quiet decision to drop our monarch’s 16th-century religious title.
Photo by Samuel Regan-Asante on Unsplash
April 7, 2023
Rev. Dr. Andrew Bennett, our faith communities program director, joins journalist Althia Raj on It's Political, her Toronto Star podcast. He explains the findings of our research brief on religious hate crimes in Canada and helps explain why religious Canadians have a role to play in politics and other spheres of life.
Photo by gazali marimbo on Unsplash
April 7, 2023
"Faith and religion have a public dimension," writes Ray Pennings, executive vice-president of Cardus. "They are not just personal and private. Canadians may be pleasantly surprised to learn that faith and faith communities are a much more significant part of our social fabric than they realize."
Religious Freedom
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What else are we working toward?
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects