[Title 3 CFR 7753]
[Code of Federal Regulations (annual edition) - January 1, 2005 Edition]
[Title 3 - Presidential Documents]
[Proclamation 7753 - Proclamation 7753 of January 16, 2004]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]


3Presidential Documents12005-01-012005-01-01false7753Proclamation 7753Presidential Documents
Proclamation 7753 of January 16, 2004

Religious Freedom Day, 2004

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

America is a land of many faiths, and the right to religious freedom is 
a foundation of our Nation. On Religious Freedom Day, Americans 
acknowledge the centrality of their faith and reaffirm that the great 
strength of our country is the heart and soul of our citizens.

[[Page 6]]

Religious Freedom Day celebrates the passage of the Virginia Statute for 
Religious Freedom on January 16, 1786. Thomas Jefferson, drafter of the 
legislation, considered it one of his three greatest accomplishments, 
along with writing the Declaration of Independence and founding the 
University of Virginia. Recognizing the importance of faith to our 
people, our Founding Fathers guaranteed religious freedom in the 
Constitution.
Protecting our religious freedom requires the vigilance of the American 
people and of government at all levels. Within my Administration, the 
Department of Justice is acting to protect religious freedom, including 
prosecuting those who attack people or places of worship because of 
religious affiliation. The Department of Education has issued new 
guidelines that allow students to engage in constitutionally protected 
religious activity in public schools. These guidelines protect, for 
example, students' rights to say a prayer before meals in the cafeteria, 
to gather with other students before school to pray, and to engage in 
other expressions of personal faith.
Through my Faith-Based and Community Initiative, my Administration 
continues to encourage the essential work of faith-based and community 
organizations. Governments can and should support effective social 
services, including those provided by religious people and 
organizations. When government gives that support, it is important that 
faith-based institutions not be forced to change their religious 
character. In December 2002, I signed an Executive Order to end 
discrimination against faith-based organizations in the Federal grants 
process. In September 2003, in implementing this order, my 
Administration eliminated many of the barriers that have kept faith-
based charities from partnering with the Federal Government to help 
Americans in need. Six Federal agencies have proposed or finalized new 
regulations to ensure that no organization or beneficiary will be 
discriminated against in a Federally funded social service program on 
the basis of religion.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of 
America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and 
laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 16, 2004, as 
Religious Freedom Day. I urge all Americans to reflect on the blessings 
of our religious freedom and to observe this day through appropriate 
events and activities in homes, schools, and places of worship.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this sixteenth day of 
January, in the year of our Lord two thousand four, and of the 
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and twenty-
eighth.
GEORGE W. BUSH