text: Restricting Religious Freedom | Dr. Richard Land
  ​Southern Evangelical Seminary Leader Dr. Richard Land Says New Poll Results That Muslims Are Less Deserving of Religious Freedom Are 'Concerning
  Evangelical leader Dr. Richard Land, who also serves as the president of Southern Evangelical Seminary (SES,www.ses.edu), says those results are concerning, especially in a country that was founded on religious freedom.
  "While it can be understandable that fear and trepidation surround the Muslim faith for some," Land said, "it is deeply concerning that nearly 40 percent polled feel that religious liberties are reserved only for those who think and believe like we do. Those who peacefully practice their faith are much different than the radical extremists who carry out violence and seek to instill fear in the name of Islam. However, those seeking to overthrow society or to employ violence to coerce others must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Commitment to the First Amendment does not require Americans to sign a suicide pact that allows our enemies to use our freedoms to undermine them.
  "The fact is that America was founded on religious freedom," he continued, "becoming home to those who wanted to escape persecution for their beliefs. And while the world has certainly changed over the past 200 years, those tenets must remain pristine and inviolate. Our commitment to soul freedom must remain stalwart and unwavering.
  "We must always remember that what we allow the government to do to others, they can do to us tomorrow. When I was a boy, it seemed that the Jehovah's Witnesses or the Mormons came to our door at least twice a week during dinner time. I asked my mother, a devote Baptist, 'Why can't the government stop them from bothering us during dinner?' My mother wisely replied, 'Son, if we allow the government to do that to them today, they can do that to us tomorrow.' Among the many prices of freedom is the fact that you will sometimes be inconvenienced by the actions of others. That inconvenience does not include being killed or being prevented from exercising those freedoms."
  According to the poll: The poll was taken at a tumultuous time in America, between Dec. 10 and 13, just over a week after Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik, a married couple, opened fire at a holiday party in San Bernardino, Calif. Fourteen people were killed and 22 injured, most of them county employees.
  81% say religious liberty protections are important for Christians
  61% say the same is true for Muslims.
  About 7 in 10 say preserving Jews' religious freedom is important
  67% say Mormons warrant these protections.
  "As the national conversation turns more and more to the Muslim faith and its place in America," Land said, "these resources are excellent for those looking to understand more about world religions, the differences between Christianity and Islam, and promoting an intelligent and heartfelt understanding of the Muslim religion."