Next week is Independence Day in the United States. It’s a time not only for family and friends to gather, but also a time to celebrate some of the nation’s enduring values and freedoms.
Join Brian Grim at the historic Charles Carroll House in Annapolis, Maryland, on Thursday 7th July at 7:30 PM for a lively discussion of one of those foundational values – religious freedom. This is part of the Charles Carroll House Speaker Series ($10 donation to the historic Charles Carroll House is requested).
- Talk: Religious Freedom – Tremendous Global Challenges and Opportunities
- Who: Brian Grim, President, Religious Freedom & Business Foundation
- When: Thursday, 7th July, 7:30 PM
- Where: Charles Carroll House, 107 Duke of Gloucester Street, Annapolis, MD 21401
- Phone: 410.269.1737
- RSVP: Register, seating is limited
The Historic Charles Carroll House
Celebrating a history that spans over 300 years, the Carroll House is a restoration-in-progress. The site bears great historical significance to the state of Maryland and America as the home of (1) Charles Carroll the Settler, first Attorney General of Maryland, (2) his son, Charles Carroll of Annapolis, and (3) his grandson, Charles Carroll of Carrollton (1737-1832).
Faced with both persecution and restrictions for his faith, Charles Carroll of Carrollton secured his family’s vision of personal, political and religious freedom for all citizens when he became the only Catholic to sign the Declaration of Independence in 1776. The Carroll House is one of only fifteen surviving signer’s birthplaces in the United States. As the home of the only Catholic signer, the Carroll House also bears great historical significance to the Catholic Church in Maryland and America.
The Carrolls were among the most prominent Catholics in the English colonies and the early United States. One cousin, John Carroll, was the first Catholic bishop in the United States, having been named first Bishop of Baltimore in 1789. The property’s Catholic connections were renewed in 1852 when it was conveyed to the Redemptorists who used it as their novitiate. Today the Carroll House is leased and stewarded by the Charles Carroll House of Annapolis, Inc. It is open to the public for tours on Saturdays and Sundays from early June through late September. It is available by appointment for group tours year-round. The House hosts various public events throughout the year and is available to rent for private events.
Today, the property, on the grounds of St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church, is among the largest and most impressive historic sites in Annapolis. It is owned by the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (Redemptorists), a Roman Catholic congregation of of priests and brothers.
Brian Grim
Brian J. Grim, Ph. D., is president of the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation (RFBF) and a leading expert on international religious demography and the socio-economic impact of restrictions on religious freedom. Brian recently served as chair of the World Economic Forum’s global agenda council on the role of faith (2015-16).
Brian holds a visiting professorship at St. Mary’s University in London, where he is developing the RFBF’s Empowerment+ initiative to increase religious freedom by helping those experiencing a wide range of socio-economic risks including displacement, unemployment, isolation, crime, addiction and extremism become self-reliant. Brian also supports and works closely with the “Business for Peace” platform of the United Nations Global Compact. He is also a Distinguished Fellow at the Religious Freedom Center of the Newseum Institute in Washington, DC.
Brian is an advisor for the religion & geopolitics project of the Tony Blair Faith Foundation. He is also an associate scholar at the Religious Liberty Project at Georgetown University and an affiliated scholar at Boston University’s Institute on Culture, Religion & World Affairs (see full CV).
Prior to becoming the Foundation’s president in 2014, Brian directed the largest social science effort to collect and analyze global data on religion at the Pew Research Center. He also worked for two decades as an educator in the former Soviet Union, China, Central Asia, the Middle East and Europe. Brian holds a doctorate in sociology from the Pennsylvania State University and is author of numerous articles and books including The Price of Freedom Denied (Cambridge Univ. Press), The World Religion Database (Brill), The World’s Religions in Figures (Wiley) and The Yearbook of International Religious Demography (Brill). Dr. Grim writes the Weekly Number Blog and also is a TEDx speaker. He also writes the Weekly Rhyme, adding to a large body of poetry he’s written through the years.
Brian has appeared as an expert on global religion on numerous media outlets, including CNN, BBC, Fox, CBS, C-SPAN, and regularly presents to high level audiences throughout the world including the White House, State Department, European Parliament, the Vatican, and various the United Nations bodies including the Human Rights Council, and the UN Alliance of Civilizations and the UN Global Compact.