The Committee for Religious Liberty of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops seeks to strengthen and sustain religious freedom by assisting the U.S. bishops, individually and collectively, to teach about religious freedom to the faithful and the broader public, and to promote and defend religious freedom in law and policy.

To this end we:

• Collaborate with other USCCB committees on religious liberty issues
• Develop educational materials
• Sponsor the annual Religious Freedom Week (June 22 - 29)
• Provide materials for the Solemnity of Christ the King
• Circulate fact sheets and other information on critical issues
• Publish First Freedom newsletter
• Provide dioceses with religious liberty liturgical resources
• Coordinate/advise on public policy efforts concerning these issues

Chairman

Most Reverend Kevin C. Rhoades, Chairman
Bishop of Ft. Wayne-South Bend

Committee Members

Most Reverend Robert E. Barron 
Bishop of Winona-Rochester

Most Reverend Michael F. Burbidge 
Bishop of Arlington

Most Reverend James D. Conley 
Bishop of Lincoln 

Most Reverend Thomas A. Daly 
Bishop of Spokane

Most Reverend Robert J. McClory 
Bishop of Gary 

Most Reverend Michael F. Olson 
Bishop of Fort Worth

Most Reverend Mark J. Seitz 
Bishop of El Paso

Most Reverend A. Elias Zaidan, MLM 
Bishop of Maronite Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon

Consultants

Most Reverend Timothy Cardinal Dolan 
Archbishop of New York 

Most Reverend William E. Lori 
Archbishop of Baltimore 

Maria Montserrat (“Montse”) Alvarado 
President and COO of EWTN News 

Richard W. Garnett 
University of Notre Dame Paul J. Schierl / Fort Howard Corporation Professor of Law; Concurrent Professor of Political Science; Faculty Director, Notre Dame Program on Church, State & Society  

Mary Rice Hasson 
Kate O’Beirne Senior Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center; Co-founder and Director of the Person and Identity Project 

Patrick E. Kelly 
Supreme Knight, Knights of Columbus 

L. Martin Nussbaum 
Partner, First & Fourteenth PLLC; General Counsel, Catholic Benefits Association

Staff

Aaron M. Weldon, Ph.D.
Assistant Director

Diana Brown
Program Specialist

Emily Schumacher-Novak
Associate Director, Education and Outreach