Freedom Of Religion, In Theory

The South African Bill of Rights guarantees that "everyone has the right to freedom of religion". However my experience in ministry is that the exercising of this right, even in its most basic aspects, is frequently denied. For example, the right to attend Church on Sunday, or the right to fulfil important Church leadership functions (say, as an elder). The reason for the difficulty is economic priorities, by which I mean the priorities of the employer. Not seldom, churchgoers report to me that they will lose their jobs if they attend Church. In an urban Church in particular, this may have a disruptive effect on a weekly basis, which may be widely felt.