The frigid winter weather was no deterrent to celebrating religious freedom, at least for the Knights of Columbus. Flags snapped in the brisk January wind as dozens of Knights from Rappahannock Assembly No. 1613 paraded down the streets of historic Fredericksburg Jan. 14.
The patriotic parade commenced the Knights’ 50th annual Religious Freedom Day. The celebration commemorates the anniversary of the Bill of Rights and the First Amendment, which ensures Americans’ right to religious freedom. The Knights’ celebration preceded the national observance of Religious Freedom Day Jan. 16.
Founding Father James Madison introduced the Bill of Rights during the First Constitutional Congress in Philadelphia June 8, 1789. The Bill of Rights was ratified by the necessary three-fourths of the original 14 states three years later Dec. 15, 1791. The First Amendment was based on the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom, which Thomas Jefferson drafted in Fredericksburg in 1777. The Thomas Jefferson Religious Freedom Monument in downtown Fredericksburg marks the place where Jefferson drafted the Virginia statute.
The religious freedom parade began at the Virginia Railway Express station in Fredericksburg and concluded at the religious freedom monument. More than 50 local residents and Knights attended the celebration, along with Fredericksburg Mayor Kerry Devine and Delegate Robert Orrock of the Virginia House of Delegates.
Msgr. John C. Cregan, former pastor of Blessed Sacrament Church in Alexandria and retired U.S. Marine Corps lieutenant colonel, delivered the keynote address. He emphasized that religious Americans “have a responsibility in this great country to seek the truth.”
“It’s so sad when many take this great privilege of religious freedom for granted,” Msgr. Cregan said. “So, we are called on this day, as we recognize the great freedom we have to always stand for truth, to live the truth, to stand against the secular culture that pulls so many people away from the faithful practice … So, we can as we stand for faith expect opposition.”
The Knights placed a wreath in front of the monument. Father Richard A. Miserendino, chaplain of the University of Mary Washington’s St. John Bosco Catholic Campus Center in Fredericksburg, offered a final blessing. Attendees rounded out the celebration with a chorus of “God Bless America.”
Mary and Michael Walsh, parishioners of St. Patrick Church in Fredericksburg, have attended the celebration for more than 20 years.
“This is the central core of our freedom, our dependence on God and our recognition of his kingship because if you’re not responsible to God, then tyranny takes over,” Mary said.
Keith Amburgey, a parishioner of St. Jude Church in Fredericksburg, has volunteered at the event with the Knights for seven years. The assembly recently appointed him to the position of Faithful Navigator. “The navigator tries to get people together to do patriotic events,” Amburgey said.
“It would always be in our best interest to celebrate religious freedom,” he said. “It’s always been an honor, and now I get to help lead it, so that’s quite a humbling thing for me to do.”
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee for Religious Liberty released its first annual report on the state of religious freedom in the U.S. Jan. 16.
“Catholics have a vital role to play in defending religious freedom and promoting the common good,” said Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Ind., chairman of the committee.
“Alongside the great work that many other Catholic and religious liberty organizations are doing, I pray that this report helps raise awareness of the threats to our first freedom here in America,” he said, “and that it helps Catholics and all people of good will contribute to the common good of these United States.”
