Some Americans say religious freedom is not just a problem in the world; it is the problem in the world. Now promoting religious freedom is a higher priority for the United States.
President Obama has signed into law the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act, named for the former long time Virginia congressman who's dedicated his career to advancing religious liberty, including the creation of America's Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom.
"It will strengthen the whole effort of our government in order to advocate on behalf of the persecuted church," Frank Wolf told CBN News' Beltway Buzz.
The new law:
- Elevates the Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom so he or she reports directly to the Secretary of State.
- Integrates international religious freedom into U.S. foreign policy.
- Mandates religious freedom training of Foreign Service officers.
- Requires coordination between the Ambassador and the National Security Council
- Allows for groups like ISIS to be classified as groups of concern, just like countries.
"We are seeing the church in Iraq literally coming to an end. In five years, unless something dramatic is done, we will see no more Christians in the cradle of Christianity. We've seen Christians in Iraq go from 1.5 million down to about 245,000," Wolf continued.