Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito spoke out for the first time since Roe v. Wade was overturned in a fearless oration and inspired speech that carries an eternal echo. At the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit in Rome, Alito emboldened the room to take a stand and fight for the religious liberty that is trying to be nefariously torn down.
The heaven-breathed speech was to awaken the hearts of men that religious liberty is facing a new challenge, a challenge of people turning away from the faith at a rapid pace and a society that now believes religion is no longer important.
“It’s hard to convince people that religion is worth defending if they don’t think it’s that important,” Alito says. In what many scholars are calling a post-Christian society in America, Alito voiced the importance of people of faith knowing why and how to defend liberty.
For many Christians it can be easy to say that they believe their faith should be defended, that is their right under the Constitution, but why? Are followers of Jesus Christ able to stand up to the society around them that is steadfast in diminishing religion and explain to them why that should never happen?
Alito believes a crucial aspect of that defense is done through looking back at America’s history. Before the government was caring for those who couldn’t care for themselves, believers were. Ursuline nuns founded the first orphanage in America in 1729. If the freedom of religious speech starts to be diminished then there is no barring that the same can’t be done for other kinds of speech, “Religious liberty promotes domestic tranquility—people hold together and they flourish,” Alito says.
In another look back in time, some of the most influential people in social reform were Christians. The people bold enough to fight for the abolishment of slavery were followers of Jesus Christ. Martin Luther King Jr., who played a pivotal role in the civil rights movement, was a devout Christian man. His arrest, imprisonment and fearless oratory inspired by heaven impacted real change nationwide. Those with true, pure faith are the kind of people who will stand up for the equal treatment of all people.
“People with deep religious convictions will be able to act in accordance to what they see as true and right, as engines of reform,” and that’s one reason why Alito believes we must fight for religious liberty. No matter how hard governments have tried to tread on the faith of passionate followers of Jesus, the continuation of the gospel going forth with power and authority will always remain.
During his speech, Alito pointed to all that the government in China has tried to do over the years to completely squelch religious freedoms. Despite their efforts, Christianity in China is more widespread today than ever before. Alito says that if the trends in China continue that there will be more Christians in China than in the United States.
As Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15:55, “Oh death, where is thy sting?” The believer’s hope for the future rests securely in the finished work of Jesus Christ. In his first speech since the historic overturning of Roe v. Wade, Alito finishes with a poetic encouragement to all listening, “The champions of religious liberty who go out wise as serpents and as harmless as doves can expect to find the hearts that are open to their message.” {eoa}
Shelby Lindsay is an assistant editor at Charisma Media.
