CHARLOTTE — The annual “Fortnight for Freedom”– a two-week campaign focusing on the importance of religious freedom both at home and abroad— kicked off June 23 with a march through uptown Charlotte and a prayer vigil outside the Charles Jonas Federal Courthouse, where a group of Catholics prayed the Litany for Religious Liberty, the rosary and the Chaplet of Divine Mercy.
Stopping in Independence Square during their march through uptown Charlotte, speakers prayed and spoke about the threats to religious liberty, especially the persecution of Christians in the Middle East, and about the need to protect the conscience rights of others.
The 14-day observance of the Fortnight for Freedom, which concluded on Independence Day, is a call by the U.S. bishops for all Catholics in our nation to pray, learn and get involved in peaceful public action to protect the right to religious liberty, “Our First, Most Cherished Liberty.”
— Photos by Patricia L. Guilfoyle | Catholic News Herald