U.S. State Department Hosts ‘Largest Religious Freedom Event Ever Done in the World’

The U.S. State Department is hosting the second Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom event, a summit being called the largest religious freedom event in history.

According to the Christian Post, the three-day event started Tuesday and some 1,000 civil society and political leaders from around the world are expected to attend.

“Much effort has been put into making this a very special week,” U.S. Ambassador-at-large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback said during his introductory remarks.

“This is the largest human rights event ever hosted at the State Department and the largest religious freedom event ever done in the world. I hope you can sense and feel the importance of this moment in time. A global human rights movement centered on religious freedom is being launched from this meeting.”

As part of the summit, survivors of the Pittsburgh, Penn. shooting at a synagogue and survivors of the New Zealand mosque shooting delivered messages to attendees.

Dr. Farid Ahmad, who survived one of the mosque shootings in New Zealand, had previously said he forgave the shooter, and at the event, Ahmad said his faith was the reason he was able to forgive the man, who killed 51 people, including his wife.

“I had to respond and my response was that I offered my love and forgiveness for the killer,” Ahmad said.

“’Why did I do…