Religious Freedom is for Muslims Too

Last week Russell Moore, the leader of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, filed an amicus brief in support of a Muslim group that wants to build a mosque in New Jersey.  And now he is getting a lot of flak from fellow Southern Baptists.  Let me be clear:  There are now leaders in the Southern Baptist Convention who do not support religious freedom for Muslims.  In light of the fact that Baptists have historically been champions of religious liberty for all, that is a shame. 

As Christians we should agree with Russell Moore on this issue.  Religious freedom is not just for Christians, and it is not just for Baptists.  It the right of every human being, regardless of their religion.  When the government restricts the free exercise of one religious group, it is a crime against all people.  It is government overreach at its worst.  If the government is given the power to prevent Muslims from building a mosque, it's only a matter of time before certain cities begin to prevent Christians from building churches because of their beliefs about marriage, gender, sexuality, and abortion.  Moore put it like this: 

"What it means to be a Baptist is to support soul freedom for everybody... Brothers and sisters, when you have a government that says 'we can decide whether or not a house of worship can be constructed based upon the theological beliefs of that house of worship,' then there are going to be Southern Baptist churches in San Francisco and New York and throughout this country who are not going to be able to build."

Russell Moore's support is not a Baptist endorsement of the religion of Islam.  There's not much about Islam that a Christian can support or admire or agree with.  But Moore understands that by supporting the religious freedom of Muslims he is protecting the religious liberty of Southern Baptists.  And to oppose the religious freedom of Muslims is only to give the government the power to persecute Christians. 

In short, if you want religious freedom for yourself, you have to support religious freedom for all.