On Father’s Day, Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity pledge prayers in union with the U.S. Catholic Bishops’ Fortnight for Freedom: the freedom to bear witness to the truth of the Gospel.
We are fourteen days from the Fourth of July and the annual celebration of our Independence. United States Catholic Bishops have designated June 21-July 4 as a Fortnight for Freedom: the Freedom to Bear Witness to the Gospel. Religious liberty is a topic that has been at the forefront in recent years, but its implications-especially if it is curtailed or threatened-are timeless. We see religious freedom as our first, more cherished liberty.
The bishops asked us to take this time to pray and to grow in 
awareness of the national and international concerns for the religious liberty of people and institutions.
Our celebration occurs as the liturgical calendar remembers a series of great martyrs who, like many Christians today, remained faithful despite persecution by political power: Saint Thomas More and Saint John Fisher, Saint. John the Baptist, Saints Peter and Paul, and the First Martyrs of the Church of Rome.
Let us keep in prayer all people throughout the world, many of whom are striving for religious freedom today even in the midst of grave persecution.
