Fortnight for Freedom

What is Fortnight for Freedom?

The U.S. bishops have called for a Fortnight for Freedom, a two-week period of prayer and action, to address many current challenges to religious liberty. The Fortnight for Freedom: Witnesses to Freedom will take place from June 21 to July 4, 2017, a time when our liturgical calendar celebrates a series of great martyrs who remained faithful in the face of persecution by political power—St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher, St. John the Baptist, SS. Peter and Paul, and the First Martyrs of the Church of Rome. The theme of this year's Fortnight will focus on the "freedom to bear witness" to the truth of the Gospel.

The martyrs give voice to what we already feel and they declare what we would like to have the strength to express. ~ Fides et Rati

Celebrate Fortnight for Freedom in Your Parish

Ways to celebrate Fortnight for Freedom

Witnesses to Freedom from Around the World

Fortnight Spotlight...

Pope Francis and Religious Freedom, Quotes from Our Holy Father
Fortnight for Freedom in U.S. Church
May 5, 2015, Vatican Radio
Religious Liberty and the Practice of Charity
John Garvey, J.D., President, Catholic University of America
ISIS and Indiana: The Global Crisis of Religious Liberty and Catholic Responsibility
Thomas Farr, Ph.D., Director, Religious Freedom Project, Georgetown University
Help Persecuted Christians and Support Traditional Families
Helen Alvaré, J.D., Professor of Law, George Mason University
Join the Call to Prayer Facebook Page to receive weekly emails on prayer and fasting for religious liberty!

Prayer Resources

These reflections and articles are intended for daily use during the Fortnight for Freedom, and the readings and the questions that follow can be used for group discussion or for personal reflection.

Continuing the Search for Religious Liberty, The Contribution of Dignitatis Humanae.
April 21, 2015, Archbishop William E. Lori

Of Human Dignity, The Declaration on Religious Freedom at 50
March 18, 2015, Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, OFM Capuchin, First Things

Individual Days

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Prayer for the Protection of Religious Liberty

O God our Creator,

from your provident hand we have received
our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
You have called us as your people and given us
the right and the duty to worship you, the only true God,
and your Son, Jesus Christ.
Through the power and working of your Holy Spirit,
you call us to live out our faith in the midst of the world,
bringing the light and the saving truth of the Gospel
to every corner of society.

We ask you to bless us
in our vigilance for the gift of religious liberty.
Give us the strength of mind and heart
to readily defend our freedoms when they are threatened;
give us courage in making our voices heard
on behalf of the rights of your Church
and the freedom of conscience of all people of faith.

Grant, we pray, O heavenly Father,
a clear and united voice to all your sons and daughters
gathered in your Church
in this decisive hour in the history of our nation,
so that, with every trial withstood
and every danger overcome—
for the sake of our children, our grandchildren,
and all who come after us—
this great land will always be "one nation, under God,
indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen.