In France, three brothers petitioned that nation's courts to ban The Passion of the Christ. Opponents of the film were more successful in Bahrain, where the government banned the movie two weeks ago. In Burma, Christian children have been reportedly forced to become Buddhist monks, and crosses are being removed from Christian villages. In Russia, where the last remaining independent television network has gone off the air, the parliament gave its initial endorsement to a bill that would effectively ban most public protests.

Thank God for the U.S. Constitution and its First Amendment. We can still say what we want, worship whatever God we care to, demonstrate for any cause, and use the airwaves, Internet, and printed word to challenge the powerful--and the federal government can't do a thing about it.