Texas 2011 - 82nd 1st C.S.

Texas Senate Bill SR36 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Whitmire, Carona S.R. No. 36
2	2	(In the Senate - Filed June 14, 2011; June 16, 2011, read
3	3	first time and referred to Committee on Business and Commerce;
4	4	June 20, 2011, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 7,
5	5	Nays 0; June 20, 2011, sent to printer.)
6	6
7	7
8	8	SENATE RESOLUTION
9	9	WHEREAS, The Orthodox Christian Church, in existence for
10	10	nearly 2,000 years, numbers approximately 300 million members
11	11	worldwide, with more than two million members in the United States;
12	12	and
13	13	WHEREAS, Since 1453, the continuing presence of the
14	14	Ecumenical Patriarchate in Turkey has been a living testament to
15	15	religious coexistence; and
16	16	WHEREAS, This religious coexistence is in doubt because the
17	17	Ecumenical Patriarchate is considered a minority religion by the
18	18	Turkish government; and
19	19	WHEREAS, There were millions of Orthodox Christians living in
20	20	Turkey at the turn of the 20th century, but there remain fewer than
21	21	3,000 in Turkey today; and
22	22	WHEREAS, Orthodox Christians in Texas and throughout the
23	23	United States stand to lose their spiritual leader; and
24	24	WHEREAS, While there have been difficulties in the past with
25	25	the relationship of the Orthodox Christian Church and the Turkish
26	26	government, certain recent actions by the Turkish government
27	27	suggest an interest in improving its relationship with and
28	28	treatment of the Orthodox Christian Church, and such actions are
29	29	acknowledged and welcomed; and
30	30	WHEREAS, The people of Texas desire to encourage continued
31	31	dialogue and communication between the leadership of the Turkish
32	32	government and the Orthodox Christian Church, such as recent
33	33	high-level meetings between Turkish officials and the Ecumenical
34	34	Patriarchate; now, therefore, be it
35	35	RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 82nd
36	36	Legislature, 1st Called Session, hereby urge the government of
37	37	Turkey to uphold and safeguard religious and human rights of all its
38	38	citizens without compromise, to grant the Ecumenical Patriarch
39	39	appropriate international recognition, ecclesiastical succession,
40	40	and the right to train clergy of all nationalities, and to respect
41	41	the property rights and human rights of the Ecumenical Patriarchate
42	42	and all religious and faith traditions.
43	43	* * * * *