INDIANAPOLIS (CNS) -- The U.S. Catholic Church is in the midst of its fifth annual Fortnight for Freedom, a period of prayer, advocacy and education related to religious liberty enshrined in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

The observance, which began June 21 and will end July 4, has as its theme this year "Witnesses to Freedom" as its theme and features men and women from across church history who died for their faith, from St. John the Baptist to Egyptian Coptic Christians, who were killed in 2015 by Islamic State militants.

The fortnight includes a 10-city tour of relics of Sts. Thomas More and John Fisher. Both died in 1535 after refusing to accept Parliament's Act of Supremacy, which declared that King Henry VIII was the head of the Church in England.

The U.S. bishops established the fortnight in 2012 in part because of the mounting threats to religious freedom both in the U.S. and around the world.

The Criterion, newspaper of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, recently interviewed Baltimore Archbishop William E. Lori, who is chairman of the U.S. bishop's Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty, about this year's Fortnight for Freedom and about current challenges to religious liberty in society, culture, the judicial system and politics.

He also discussed the U.S. Supreme Court's May 16 decision in Zubik v. Burwell, the legal challenge of the federal contraceptive mandate and a flashpoint in the U.S. church's fight on religious liberty issues.

The archbishop is a native of New Albany and grew up in Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish there.

The following are excerpts of that interview:

Q: Since starting in 2012, this year's Fortnight for Freedom will be the fifth one that the church in the U.S. has observed. What effects do you think it has had thus far, what challenges does the church face in making it more effective, and what hopes do you have for it this year?

A: The Fortnight for Freedom is mostly an event of prayer. It's a time to remind everyone that religious freedom is a precious gift that is under challenge in many ways at home and abroad. We must pray for those who are persecuted and the preservation of our own freedom. Praying about these matters also raises our awareness of them, not as a partisan political issue, but rather as a gift with which God has given to our humanity. So, I think the fortnight is very important for doing that.

This year, the theme is "Witnesses to Freedom." We will be doing a tour in over 10 cities of the relics of St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher, who certainly bore witness to the importance of religious freedom and freedom of conscience. As we venerate the relics of these two great saints, we will remember in a very special way those who have given up their lives in our own time in the face of oppression and a denial of religious freedom. Their witness to freedom should prompt us to understand of preserving the freedom that is ours in the United States.

Q. Why do you think it is important at this time in our history and in our current cultural atmosphere to focus on the stories of these witnesses instead of, perhaps, on calling attention to particular issues related to religious liberty?

A: It's important that we take inspiration from those who have either given their lives because they have used their freedom to bear witness to God and to the love of Christ or those who have endured suffering or persecution for that reason. There is a great danger of our becoming complacent about this, thinking about it as a kind of a partisan issue or even coming to regard religious liberty as code for discrimination rather than a gift that enables us to respond freely to God's love and to serve those around us. To be witnesses to Christ is fundamental to our religion. To be witnesses to the beauty and goodness of religious freedom and to use our freedom well is very important.

Q: A growing number of people, especially people who have the opportunity to shape public opinion, see religious liberty as the desire of one group of people to discriminate unjustly against another group. What are your thoughts?

A: Often it's the case that opinion-makers are not going after religious liberty in any direct or theoretical way. But rather, religious liberty is always embedded in an issue, a decision to practice one's faith in a decision to adhere to moral convictions or in a decision to follow the dictates of natural law. Sometimes, when we do that, we get in the way of other agendas. And that's when religious liberty gets in the cross hairs of culture. That's what we're seeing today. It's playing out one way in the Middle East. And it's playing out in another way in the West where we are beginning to experience what Pope Francis has called a 'polite persecution.

Q: How can ordinary Catholics in their daily lives counter such perceptions, especially when they don't have the megaphone in our society that some opponents of religious liberty in popular culture, politics and the media have?

A: First of all, it's important for us to have confidence as Catholic Christians that we are being directed, not to discriminate against people, but to try to embrace the full truth about human life and human dignity, the beauty, joy and goodness of marriage, and that these teachings are not directed against anybody. They are directed toward fundamental human goods. I think if we grow in our understanding of that, we can then bear witness as good and loving people who are seeking to build a good and a just society where human beings can flourish and grow. I think that's an important thing to remember. An ordinary Catholic -- and I don't think there's anything ordinary about any of us Catholics -- can do a couple of things. We can certainly pray. And the fortnight is certainly a prayer event.

We can also try to understand the nature of religious liberty more deeply. The church has a lot of resources to do this. They're a click away on the bishops' conference website, www.usccb.org. There's a video there on ... religious liberty. There are many resources. And it's important for us to understand what the church really does teach about religious freedom. Then I think it's important for us to renounce all forms of unjust discrimination, because there are instances where religion is used to discriminate unjustly. At the same time, we should resist having our teaching on marriage, sexuality and medical ethics be portrayed as discriminatory. They are not. They are expressions of the value of human life and our human dignity.

Q: What was your reaction when you learned that the court in Zubik v. Burwell had vacated the lower court rulings and remanded them back to those courts? Many of those lower court rulings had been in favor of the federal government and against various church organizations.

A: I was hopeful. As we looked at the possible outcomes, we had to naturally pray hard that we didn't have an out-and-out defeat. And we did not have that. We have lived for another day. That's for the good. So, I'm cautiously optimistic. And I hope that the negotiations will now proceed apace.

Q: How should Catholics in the U.S. keep religious liberty in their minds and hearts in the months leading up to the election as they continue to form their consciences and consider how best to contribute to the common good by their participation in this important part of our political process?

A: One of the things that we need to do during this election year is to pray for our country, pray that wisdom will prevail. I think that's a very important thing. We need to pray for our country and not just for its prosperity, but also that it would be a beacon of justice and a force for good in the world. We have to think about that as we go to the polls. We also have to raise our voices and express our expectations to candidates that we do expect our nation to champion those who are being persecuted abroad and to keep our fundamental freedoms burning brightly in our own country. Sometimes, I think we're a little timid about saying things like that. But we shouldn't be.

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Gallagher is a reporter at The Criterion, newspaper of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.