Berkley Center

The Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs at Georgetown University hosted a timely, two-day conference on “Religion and Human Rights from the UDHR to Dignitatis Humanae” on October 21 to 22, which highlighted how faith traditions offer a distinct orientation that broadens the global human rights framework, enhancing concepts of justice, dignity, and community. 

The conference commemorated the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), with a special focus on the commemoration of the sixtieth anniversary of the Patrick F. Healy Conference on "Freedom and Man" held at Georgetown in December 1964.

Revisiting "Freedom and Man"

Peter Petkoff of Oxford University opened the event with an overview of the 1964 conference. Influential Catholic theologian Rev. John Courtney Murray, S.J., published the conference proceedings as a book of the same name, which went on to significantly shape discussions on theology and human rights during the Second Vatican Council.

During the first panel discussion, Rev. David Hollenbach, S.J., a professor at the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, noted the impact of the book and the council. 

The Council achieved a breakthrough in Catholic social thought. It affirmed vigorously… both religious freedom and freedom more generally.

Meghan Clark of St. John's University expressed a similar sentiment, affirming that “human rights are understood, in Catholic social thought, as entitlements that carry with them profound responsibilities for human flourishing.” She established that rights and responsibilities are emphasized in tandem, with similar themes echoing across different faiths.

Pantelis Kalaitzidis, director of the Volos Academy for Theological Studies, relayed how Lebanese Orthodox Christian theologian and statesman Charles Malik played an integral role in drafting the UDHR. His human rights advocacy centered on the inherent value of the human person, rather than the individual alone. This perspective, Kalaitzidis contended, should guide future Orthodox approaches to human rights concerns. 

David Little, a Berkley Center research fellow, underscored the natural right to self-defense, a perspective deeply rooted in Protestantism’s endorsement of a pluralistic society. Reading aloud Article 18 of the UDHR and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) — “No one shall be subject to coercion which would impair freedom to have or adopt a religion or belief” — Little remarked, “It would be hard to deny the contributions of Protestant rights thinkers, at least as background, to the drafting of those articles.” 

These perspectives, however, highlighted the tensions inherent in balancing individual and community rights. In offering the keynote and 2024 Berkley Center Lecture, Cathleen Kaveny of Boston College discussed the Catholic Church’s journey to embracing rights within the American context, illustrating how faith-based ethics can adapt to the cultural milieu. Drawing on Murray’s work, she conveyed that political unity is possible without religious uniformity and urged the use of principled arguments in the public discourse off a pluralistic society, rather than relying solely on pragmatic ones. 

“We must make the case that it is good for all of us to be here,” said Kaveny, quoting John Murray Cuddihy, and highlighting the need for cooperative ethics in today’s deeply pluralistic societies.

Contributions of Other Religions to Human Rights Discourse

The second day of the conference broadened the conversation to welcome Islamic, Jewish, Asian, and intercultural perspectives, building on presentations by Catholic and Protestant scholars who identified the development of human rights as integral to social justice, with rights to development, community agency, and adequate standards of living gaining prominence. 

As Nader Hashemi, director of Georgetown’s Alwaleed Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, commented, “When future historians reflect on the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, the intersection of Islam and human rights will feature prominently.” Muslim participation in drafting the UDHR began an enduring relationship between the faith and global rights standards that are tested and reaffirmed today by Nobel-winning activists fighting for gender equity and against authoritarian repression.

Professor Erin Cline noted Confucianism’s long history of grappling with the balance of rights and responsibilities.

Third century BCE Chinese thinkers were among the first in the world to argue that rulers and states exist to serve their people, and that the proper aim of a good state is the welfare of its people. 

The panelists nonetheless underscored that religious freedom, while often politically divisive, remains a unifying moral imperative. “Our work for justice and human rights is both a protest and a prayer,” said Professor Linda Hogan of Trinity College Dublin. 

Contemporary Debates in Christianity

The final panel examined debates where the human rights of individuals and the rights of communities appear to be in tension. In the contemporary world these often revolve around gender and sexuality issues. Mary Doak of the University of San Diego remarked frankly that “we have special trouble applying these rights to [women, who are] roughly half of the human race, and that’s a problem if we care about human rights.” 

Fordham University theologian Aristotle Papanikolaou reviewed how the theological anthropology and political theology of the Orthodox Christian tradition have played a role in some of these debates. Maryann Cusimano Love of the Catholic University of America pointed out ways the Vatican, sometimes criticized for its approach to women’s roles, has successfully partnered with secular organizations to advance the women, peace, and security agenda, but she cautioned that more is needed to fully actualize this commitment at the national and local levels. 

The conference illuminated the dynamic interplay between faith and human rights, reinforcing that these realms are not merely compatible but essential to one another. The discussions underscored a collective commitment to advocating for dignity across diverse traditions and nations. By recognizing the moral imperatives that bind them, faith leaders and human rights advocates can collaboratively advance the cause of justice and human dignity in an increasingly pluralistic world.