News from around the world. Curated by Mark McDowell. Posts do not constitute agreement or endorsement.
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit has ruled that a Christian web designer must create websites that conflict with her religious views. In a 2-1 decision released Monday , the circuit panel ruled against Lorie Smith and her web design company, 303 Creative,…
Key Cases Church Autonomy Ministerial Exception Doctrine Bars Minister-on-Minister Hostile Work Environment Claim In Demkovich v. St. Andrew the Apostle Parish, Calumet City , No. 19-2142, 2021 WL 2880232 (7th Cir. July 9, 2021), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ruled on interlocutory appeal that the ministerial…
CALUMET CITY, Ill. – A decision involving the former music director at St. Andrew the Apostle Parish (shown here), a Catholic church in Calumet City, Ill., was praised by religious liberty advocates. (BP photo from Facebook) CHICAGO (BP) – Religious freedom advocates praised a federal appeals court opinion that protects…
Just In… Last summer, I wrote , “The Supreme Court has never been more protective of religious freedom in its history.” This term, the court’s “pro-religion” streak has continued — and then some. First, there were the COVID-19 cases. Initially, the court was reluctant to grant emergency relief, declining to…
Federal Way resident Bob Roegner is a former mayor of Auburn. Contact bjroegner@comcast.net. Here’s a tale of two United States Supreme Court decisions — one right and one wrong. Despite two clear examples of discrimination, the court ruled differently in each case. The court was correct when it declined for…
Federal Way resident Bob Roegner is a former mayor of Auburn. Contact bjroegner@comcast.net. Here’s a tale of two United States Supreme Court decisions — one right and one wrong. Despite two clear examples of discrimination, the court ruled differently in each case. The court was correct when it declined for…
Federal Way resident Bob Roegner is a former mayor of Auburn. Contact bjroegner@comcast.net. Here’s a tale of two United States Supreme Court decisions — one right and one wrong. Despite two clear examples of discrimination, the court ruled differently in each case. The court was correct when it declined for…
Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro, right, and his new justice minister, André Mendonça, attend his swearing-in ceremony at the Planalto presidential palace, in Brasilia, Brazil, on April 29, 2020. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) SÃO PAULO (RNS) — Only a few months after taking office in January of 2019, Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro…
Key Cases Church Autonomy Ministerial Exception Doctrine Bars Minister-on-Minister Hostile Work Environment Claim In Demkovich v. St. Andrew the Apostle Parish, Calumet City , No. 19-2142, 2021 WL 2880232 (7th Cir. July 9, 2021), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ruled on interlocutory appeal that the ministerial…
Policies requiring vaccination against COVID-19 need not include, and should not include, exceptions for those who have religious objections to vaccinations. Many universities, including the University of California, are requiring vaccination for all students, staff and faculty returning to campus. Many employers, public and private, are doing so as well.…
A healthcare worker at Long Beach’s Department of Health and Human Services COVID-19 vaccination clinic on July 6. Policies requiring vaccination against COVID-19 need not include, and should not include, exceptions for those who have religious objections to vaccinations. Many universities, including the University of California, are requiring vaccination for…
University of Iowa. ST. LOUIS (BP) – Southern Baptist leaders commended the latest court victory for a student faith group that was removed from a state university campus for requiring its leaders to be Christians. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled July 16 that the University of Iowa violated…
University of Iowa. ST. LOUIS (BP) – Southern Baptist leaders commended the latest court victory for a student faith group that was removed from a state university campus for requiring its leaders to be Christians. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled July 16 that the University of Iowa violated…
In a decision of significance for campuses across the country, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit upheld a trial court ruling overturning the University of Iowa’s “deregistration” of a campus Christian group, calling the action by the institution “clearly unconstitutional.” In InterVarsity v. University of Iowa ,…
A decision involving the former music director at St. Andrew the Apostle Parish, a Catholic church in Calumet City, Illinois, was praised by religious liberty advocates. (Facebook photo) CHICAGO (BP) – Religious freedom advocates praised a federal appeals court opinion that protects the freedom of churches and other religious groups…
Three recent precedents have ‘really increased the amount of protection for religious freedom.’ In recent years, the Supreme Court has shown a greater willingness to protect the First Amendment right of free exercise of religion from state and municipal regulation. In Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission in 2018,…
The European Court of Justice ruled Thursday that employers can forbid their staff from wearing visible symbols of religious or political belief, including headscarves, in order to present an image of neutrality. The Court decided on the matter following referrals from the Labour Court of Hamburg and the Federal Labour…
The Eighth Circuit affirmed school administrators are not entitled to qualified immunity for punishing a Christian student group that required its leaders to abide by its beliefs. Macbride Hall at the University of Iowa in Iowa City. (Photo by David Mark from Pixabay via Courthouse News) (CN) — University of…
(Photo : First Liberty Institute) Judge Wayne Mack A federal appeals court reportedly allowed a judge from Texas to resume his chaplain-led prayers while the First Amendment lawsuit against his tradition continues. The Christian Post said Montgomery County Justice of the Peace Judge Wayne Mack was allowed by the United…
Last week, the court reached a favorable settlement for Capitol Hill Baptist Church with the District of Columbia in the case Capitol Hill Baptist Church v. Muriel E. Bowser . “We are grateful for the work of NRB Member First Liberty in helping the faithful, gospel-preaching congregation at Capitol Hill…
Jackson Lewis Law Firm Logo On July 9, 2021, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, sitting en banc, issued a 7-3 decision in the closely watched case Sandor Demkovich v. St Andrew the Apostle Parish, Calumet City and the Archdiocese of Chicago . The Seventh Circuit found that…
An appellate court upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit against a Temperance priest who criticized a teenager’s suicide during his funeral after his parents specifically asked for privacy regarding the circumstances behind the teen’s death. The Michigan Court of Appeals ruled the Rev. Don LaCuesta, pastor of Our Lady of…
Members of the Texas House stand for a prayer as the House begins a special session, Thursday, July 8, 2021, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) **FILE** more > A justice of the peace in Montgomery County, Texas, can continue opening sessions with prayers from volunteer chaplains while a lawsuit…
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court decided on Friday that it will hear a case brought by families from Maine who want to use a state tuition program to send their children to religious schools. At the heart of the case is a Maine Department of Education rule…
July 2 (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday took up a challenge by two families with children attending Christian schools to a Maine tuition assistance program that bars taxpayer money from being used to pay for religious educational institutions in a case that could further narrow the separation…