2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit: Day 3 Recap
WEDNESDAY, JULY 8
MORNING KEYNOTE
Rabbi Meir Soloveichik
Wednesday morning of the Notre Dame Law School Religious Liberty Summit began with a keynote address from Rabbi Meir Soloveichik of Yeshiva University. Rabbi Soloveichik serves as the rabbi of Congregation Shearith Israel, the oldest Jewish congregation in the United States, and as the director of the Zahava and Moshael Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought at Yeshiva University.
“America looked to the Jewish story as an indication of divine blessing and therefore as a source of inspiration for the sort of country America was called to be. The Jews were to be welcomed in America, Washington decided, not only because of the idea, but also because of the way in which the Jewish story inspired America itself.”
"America's unity was never meant to come from sameness, but from a shared commitment to enduring principles."
“The warmth that Jews experienced in the nascent nation that was the United States can only be fully understood if we understand the way in which many founders and America in general saw the story of biblical Israel as a source of inspiration.”
Drawing on the ideas of the late Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, Rabbi Soloveichik argued that American society, from the Pilgrim Fathers onward, was based on the concept of covenant as set out in the Tanakh, the Hebrew Bible, particularly in Exodus and Deuteronomy. He then quoted Rabbi Sacks, describing the United States as "that rare phenomenon: a covenant society. Covenant societies represent conscious new beginnings. They are founded on an idea, dedicated to a proposition."
"The rights we enjoy as Americans are fragile. They must be cherished, protected, and taught from generation to generation, because what may appear ordinary to us is actually extraordinary."
Rabbi Meir Soloveichik, Congregation Shearith Israel
PANEL DISCUSSION
Localism, State Political Experimentation, and Religious Freedom
The first panel discussion on Day 2 of the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit was on “Localism, State Political Experimentation, and Religious Freedom" with Professor Christopher Lund (Wayne State University Law School), Professor Phillip Muñoz (University of Notre Dame), and Professor Mark Storslee (University of North Carolina School of Law). The session was chaired by Professor John Meiser (Notre Dame Law School).
“State religion isn't like zoning or tax policies. Experimentation sometimes teaches us something, but basic rights are not things we should experiment with. If religion is a fundamental right, if it's a universal right, then it should be enjoyed universally.”
Professor Christopher Lund, Wayne State University Law School
“Government cannot tell us how, when, why to pray. Government has no authority or jurisdiction over our religious worship, so religious worship cannot be commanded by the state or punished by the state, and I think the founders universally agreed about that, and that was the core essence of the right of religious liberty.”
"You can't be self-governing if your people are not self-governing."
Professor Phillip Muñoz, University of Notre Dame
"The government can't require people to perform their religious duties with coercion."
"None of the provisions of the First Amendment originally applied against the states, those were all meant to be limitations on the federal government."
Professor Mark Storslee, University of North Carolina School of Law
"We heard much yesterday and this morning about the origins and inspirations of our Declaration of Independence and about the particular liberties that the Founders sought to secure and protect. The heart of [the Declaration] was not simply protecting freedom in the abstract but indeed protecting the right of a people to independently govern themselves. It was a reaction against not just a political system that suppressed freedom but that violated the very idea that a community governs itself – and to resist a distant authority from outside."
Professor John Meiser, Notre Dame Law School
AMERICAN MARTYR: THE STANLEY ROTHER STORY DOCUMENTARY TRAILER
Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit participants enjoyed a screening of the trailer for the feature-length documentary “American Martyr: The Stanley Rother Story.” The film tells the true story of Blessed Stanley Rother, an American priest from Oklahoma who was martyred after returning to Guatemala during the country's civil war, refusing to abandon the Indigenous people he served.
The trailer screening was followed by remarks from Michael Scaperlanda, chancellor for the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City. The documentary is heavily rooted in the work of Scaperlanda and his wife, María Ruiz Scaperlanda, who has spent decades championing Blessed Stanley Rother's legacy. Her book, “The Shepherd Who Didn't Run: Blessed Stanley Rother, Martyr from Oklahoma,” serves as a foundational text on his life.
The documentary will be shown in theaters nationwide on August 25 and 26 in English and on August 27 in Spanish.
PANEL DISCUSSION
Religious Freedom and Abundance
At the second set of panel discussions on Day 2 of the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit panelists explored the theme “Religious Freedom and Abundance.” Panelists were Professor Angela Carmella (University of Seton Hall Law School), Professor John Infranca (Suffolk University), and Mr. Jim Towey (Aging with Dignity). The session was chaired by Fr. Patrick Reidy, C.S.C. (Notre Dame Law School).
"Catholic social thought gives us moral principles and moral language rooted in biblical and natural traditions... and to share that critique and that teaching in society is considered in Catholic thought an aspect of religious freedom."
"All private property is encumbered by a debt owed to society to ensure the use of property not only for the owner, but for the common good of all."
Professor Angela Carmella, University of Seton Hall Law School
“Integral human development…emphasizes the development of the whole person, rejecting the idea that prioritizing material and economic growth alone is sufficient, and it also seeks the development of all people, broadening the beneficiaries of abundance.”
Professor John Infranca, Suffolk University
“I had the privilege of working alongside Mother Teresa on and off over 12 years, seeing her regularly — a grace I didn’t deserve…. She was abundance itself. She was a channel of grace.”
“Her message was abundance: the abundant love of God that says we are made in His image and likeness.”
Mr. Jim Towey, Aging with Dignity
"We're going to spend a little time thinking about how property rights enable or inhibit religious practice and how they interact with this conversation about religious freedom, because faith communities gather for more than worship. Their religious mission reaches outside the sanctuary."
"These ministries, often on church-owned property, flow from the same religious belief given ritual expression in worship. Faith communities discern how to use their property based on what their theological and moral convictions require."
Fr. Patrick Reidy, C.S.C., Notre Dame Law School
PANEL DISCUSSION
Religious Freedom and the Catholic Mission in a Secular Age
The final panel of the 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit focused on “Religious Freedom and the Catholic Mission in a Secular Age" with Sr. Marie Morgan (Franciscan Alliance Inc.), Sr. Petra Nielsen (Franciscan Alliance Inc.), Fr. Jordi Pujol (Pontifical University of Santa Croce), and Bishop Robert McClory (Diocese of Gary). The session was chaired by Msgr. John Paul Kimes (Notre Dame Law School).
"The Holy Spirit works with tension in the middle. I've held on to that all my life. Sometimes, when you try to keep a healthy balance—with pressures pushing from one side and pressures pushing from the other—having the strength to maintain that balance, whether it's in education or health care, and having the strength to speak up are always important."
Sr. Marie Morgan, Franciscan Alliance Inc.
"When we talk about religious liberty and standing for the truth in a culture that's telling us to stand down and back away, it's not just about our religious beliefs or our ability to create a health care system that reflects those beliefs. It's also about the people we serve."
Sr. Petra Nielsen, Franciscan Alliance Inc.
"The challenge to religious freedom today is not only legal. It is also embedded in the communications architecture of our digital world."
Fr. Jordi Pujol, Pontifical University of Santa Croce
"The Church must remain attentive to the challenges facing religious liberty while also recognizing new opportunities to strengthen it."
Bishop Robert McClory, Diocese of Gary
Msgr. John Paul Kimes, Notre Dame Law School, moderated a lively and fruitful discussion, posing thoughtful questions that encouraged the panelists to reflect on how religious liberty shapes their ministries and the challenges they encounter in fields ranging from education to health care.
Read the other daily recaps from the 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit: