Elder Bednar sounds alarm on religious rights Elder David A. Bednar looked into a camera on his desk Wednesday in the Church Administration Building and delivered a strong statement on YouTube about what he called “a profound devaluing of religion.” He described how Western democracies have encroached on the free exercise of religion during the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, one U.S. state allowed lawyers, doctors and caregivers to meet with people to administer to their legal, health and nutritional needs but did not allow a clergy member to minister to a person’s religious needs when the risks were equal for all. “The COVID-19 crisis has presented us with a unique opportunity to reaffirm and shore up religious freedom,” Elder Bednar said. “We have witnessed the government’s swift, well-intentioned, but often dangerous breaching of the boundaries that protect the free exercise of religion. Do we hear the buzzer on the alarm clock? This is a wake-up call for all of us. Those fundamental boundaries and protections must be healed, renewed and fortified.” His talk was the keynote address for BYU’s Religious Freedom Annual Review. Elder Bednar outlined two key principles for people of faith and democracies to follow: 1. “Religion should not be treated less favorably than analogous secular activities,” and
2. “Policymakers, even in a crisis, should limit the exercise of religion only when it truly is necessary to preserve public health and safety.” He made several other strong statements. Please click here to read them in my story. | 
