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The White House has been interviewing candidates, such as Senate staffer John Hanford and Southern Baptist leader Richard Land, for the religious-freedom positions. Chester Crocker, a friend of Powell's, declined an appointment as special envoy to Sudan because "he didn't want to be dictated to by the Religious Right," says a government human-rights official.

Religious human-rights activists will be watching. "China will be a test of what Bush has been saying," says Michael Horowitz of the Hudson Institute. "It will be made very clear to the President that regardless of what the State Department types tell him, there will be a political imperative to follow his own moral convictions. It will be bloody if he doesn't."

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What Does 09.11.01 Mean for Religious Persecution Policy? | Persecution watchdogs fear religious freedom will suffer. (Oct. 10, 2001)

Religious Liberty: How Are We Doing? | The challenges of being an international cop for human rights—a report by the first U.S. ambassador at large for religious freedom. (Oct. 10, 2001)

In September, President Bush nominated John V. Hanford as Ambassador at Large. Bush also appointed three new members to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. The commission elected Michael K. Young, dean of the George Washington University Law School, as chairman.

The International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA), signed October 27, 1998, set up the Commission on International Religious Freedom and created the at-large ambassadorship for religious freedom.

Related Christianity Today coverage includes:

Gordon-Conwell Grad Nominated to Complete Administration's Religious Liberty Team | Hanford pledges to bring a balanced approach and a "passion for religious freedom."

Freedom Panel Alleges Genocide | U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom makes suggestion on Sudan's worsening abuses. (May 4, 2001)

Religious Freedom Delegation Gets Cold Shoulder | Some Coptic Christians worry that foreign intervention on their behalf would spell trouble. (May 1, 2001)

Religious Freedom Act: One Year Later | Little progress seen so far, but advocates see hope for future. (Dec. 27, 1999)

'America Legislates for the World!' Muslims respond to the U.S. State Department report on religious freedom" (Nov. 19, 1999)

Religious Freedom Report Released (Oct. 25, 1999)

Religious Persecution Bill Encounters Stiff Resistance (Oct. 5, 1998)

Congress Approves Modified Religious Persecution Bill (Nov. 16, 1998)

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October 1 2001, Vol. 45, No. 12