This year's breakfast to focus on 'Religious Liberty: Threatened at Home and Abroad'

Contact: Andrew Walther, Knights of Columbus, 203-752-4253, 203-824-5412 (cellular), andrew.walther@kofc.org

WASHINGTON, April 16, 2012 /Christian Newswire/ -- Addressing a burning issue for Catholics nationwide -- religious liberty -- Knights of Columbus Supreme Knight Carl Anderson will serve as guest speaker at this year's Eighth Annual National Catholic Prayer Breakfast.

Also speaking will be Archbishop Francis Chullikatt, the Vatican's Apostolic Nuncio to the United Nations, who will deliver the keynote address.

"Seldom has religious liberty been threatened in so many places in the world, and never before in this country's history have people of faith faced such widespread threats to their religious freedom as they face today here in the United States," said Supreme Knight Anderson. "For Catholics, and all people of faith, this is a critical moment."

America's Catholic bishops -- and organizations such as the Knights of Columbus -- have been strong and vocal in their defense of the First Amendment's guarantee of the free exercise of religion. This has come in the face of a series of government actions designed to curb religious liberty -- such as in the Hosanna Tabor case in which the limits to religious liberty sought by the federal government were rejected 9-0 by the Supreme Court, and more recently with the HHS mandate, which forces employers to cover sterilization, abortion-inducing drugs and contraception at no cost to employees.

More than 800 people will attend the breakfast at the Marriott Wardman Park at 7:15 AM on Thursday, April 19.

Carl Anderson leads the Knights of Columbus, the world's largest Catholic organization and one of the nation's most active charitable groups. Previously, he served as acting director of the White House Office of Public Liaison, and for a decade on the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. He is also the author of the New York Times bestseller A Civilization of Love: what every Catholic can do to transform the world. He holds several appointments to Vatican committees and to committees of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Last year, under his leadership, the Knights of Columbus donated nearly $155 million and 70 million hours to charitable causes.

Media are welcome and media seating at the breakfast has been arranged. Please RSVP to andrew.walther@kofc.org.