Two longtime U.S. congressmen will receive an award this fall in recognition of their “relentless commitment” to religious liberty and defense of persecuted Christians around the world.
The Religious Freedom Institute (RFI) announced May 8 that Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., of New Jersey and former Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va., of Virginia, will jointly receive the Defender of Religious Freedom Award Nov. 19 during the organization’s annual dinner at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.
RFI President David Trimble described Smith and Wolf as “lions of religious freedom” who have spent decades working together to defend “America’s first freedom” and advocate for those facing religious oppression.
Serving as a congressman since 1980, Smith, a Catholic, has frequently advocated for persecuted Christians and international religious freedom throughout his political career. As Zeale News previously reported, Smith recently drew attention to violence against Christians and humanitarian concerns in Sudan, urging stronger international action. He has also spoken out for the release of imprisoned Catholic media publisher Jimmy Lai, citing concerns over Lai’s health and imprisonment under Hong Kong’s National Security Law.
According to the release, Wolf represented Virginia’s 10th Congressional District for 34 years before retiring in 2015. He authored the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, which established the Office of International Religious Freedom at the U.S. Department of State and created the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.
In 2016, Smith authored legislation reauthorizing the law, which was renamed the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act in honor of Wolf’s leadership on the issue, the release noted.
Robert George, former chairman of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, described in the release the contributions of Smith and Wolf to advancing religious liberty around the world as “incomparable.”
“These two extraordinary public servants,” George said, “are as deserving of RFI’s Defender of Religious Freedom Award as anyone could be, and RFI rightly honors them together.”
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