The CRFI Advisory Council

The CRFI researches Canadian religious freedom issues in order to educate Canadians and to strengthen the national network of religious freedom advocates.

The CRFI operates in a bridge-building capacity, providing a link between the research and the advocates who use it. The CRFI also provides language and vocabulary to help express why religious freedom is important and how it relates to public faith.

Central to the Institute’s work is the understanding that religious freedom is the fundamental right of all people, their communities, and their institutions to live out their most deeply held beliefs in both public and private contexts without interference from the state or other authorities.

The work of the CRFI is guided by a multi-faith advisory council with representatives from Canada’s Baha’i, Christian, Jewish, Mormon, and Muslim communities.

“The Cardus Religious Freedom Institute is an important new centre for research and public dialogue on religious freedom. Engaging Canadians across religious traditions, it will play a key role in sustaining religious freedom within our common life.”

– Dr. Dwight Newman

Meet the Director:
Rev. Dr. Andrew Bennett

The Rev. Dr. Andrew P.W. Bennett is Program Director of the Cardus Religious Freedom Institute. He is an ordained deacon in the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church in the Eparchy (Diocese) of Toronto and Eastern Canada.

Fr. Deacon Andrew served as Canada’s first Ambassador for Religious Freedom and Head of the Office of Religious Freedom from 2013 to 2016 during which time he led in defending and championing religious freedom internationally as a core element of Canada’s foreign policy. At the same time, he served as Canada’s Head of Delegation to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, a 31-country body which leads international efforts in Holocaust education, research, and remembrance.

As Director of the Cardus Religious Freedom Institute, Fr. Deacon Andrew works to promote religious freedom and the importance of public faith to our common life. In conjunction with his work at Cardus, Fr. Deacon Andrew is Director of the North America Action Team and Senior Fellow at the Religious Freedom Institute (RFI) in Washington, DC. The RFI is a leading independent think-tank committed to achieving broad acceptance of religious liberty as a fundamental human right, the cornerstone of a successful society, and a source of national and international security.

Fr. Deacon Andrew holds a Ph.D. in Politics (2002) from the University of Edinburgh as well as degrees in history from McGill and Dalhousie universities. When not praying, studying, or advocating, Fr. Deacon Andrew can be found with his fly rod in a stream, listening to bluegrass or Bach, or reading the Church Fathers.