News from around the world. Curated by Mark McDowell. Posts do not constitute agreement or endorsement.
Getty Images A federal appeals court has ruled against Maine parents challenging a state law that excludes religious schools from the state’s high school tuition program despite a recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that struck down similar restrictions in Montana. The U.S. 1st Circuit Court of Appeals on…
SALEM, Mass., Oct. 29, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — The Satanic Temple (TST) has filed a motion asking the Supreme Court to disqualify Justice Amy Coney Barrett from ruling on TST’s lawsuit challenging Missouri’s abortion laws which discriminate against the religious belief of TST members that abortion is not murder. The motion…
(Pixabay image via Courthouse News) BOSTON (CN) — Maine can provide tuition reimbursement to parents who send their children to private schools but not to parents who send their children to religious schools, the First Circuit held Thursday. The 63-page ruling could have national implications inasmuch as roughly half the…
This article is part of a symposium previewing Fulton v. City of Philadelphia . Clare Kindall is the solicitor general for the state of Connecticut, which joined a multi-state amicus brief filed in support of Philadelphia. While in accord with the states’ filed brief, the views expressed here are entirely…
Getty / The Atlantic The U.S. Supreme Court is poised to decide a case this term that, once again, pits religious freedom against the rights of the LGBTQ community. Earlier this month, Justice Clarence Thomas, in a concurrence written on behalf of himself and Justice Samuel Alito, attacked Obergefell v.…
Of the roughly 32 lawsuits that have been filed since March against California Gov. Gavin Newsom, many allege his executive orders violate the religious liberty clauses of the California Constitution. Twenty-two active cases address religious freedom violations, education policies, forced closures of businesses, alleged violations of federal and state laws,…
An "Open for Worship" banner is posted outside the Crossroads Community Church in Yuba City, Calif., Thursday, July 9, 2020. (The Center Square) – Of the roughly 32 lawsuits that have been filed since March against California Gov. Gavin Newsom, many allege his executive orders violate the religious liberty clauses…
Lawyer Alexander Dushku explains religious freedom during his Education Week speech. (BYU Continuing Education) Lawyer Alexander Dushku explained religious freedom for those who do not practice law during his Education Week speech and gave examples of many court cases relating to religious freedom. Religious freedom is a topic widely spoken…
Colorado’s COVID-19 public health orders that limit the number of people who can attend indoor religious services and require worshippers to wear masks at all times are unconstitutional, a federal judge ruled. U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Domenico ruled last week that state officials cannot enforce mask-wearing mandates or some…
An "Open for Worship" banner is posted outside the Crossroads Community Church in Yuba City, Calif., Thursday, July 9, 2020. (The Center Square) – Of the roughly 32 lawsuits that have been filed since March against California Gov. Gavin Newsom, many allege his executive orders violate the religious liberty clauses…
Colorado’s COVID-19 public health orders that limit the number of people who can attend indoor religious services and require worshippers to wear masks at all times are unconstitutional, a federal judge ruled. U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Domenico ruled last week that state officials cannot enforce mask-wearing mandates or some…
News – AP-National Religious freedom advocates are pleased and some secular groups alarmed following a Supreme Court ruling that states must give religious schools the same access to public funding that other private schools receive. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta). The U.S. Supreme Court is seen Tuesday, June 30, 2020 in…
Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett listens during a confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Oct. 14, 2020, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, Pool) WASHINGTON (RNS) — Since the moment Judge Amy Coney Barrett was announced as President Donald Trump’s nominee to fill the Supreme…
The jury box in the Loudoun County Courthouse. [Douglas Graham/Loudoun Now] Four religious ministries are suing the state over two new Virginia laws they claim infringe upon their rights to assert their religious beliefs—and to hire, fire and provide health insurance for their employees based on those convictions. On Sept.…
WASHINGTON, Oct. 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today welcomed a Virginia federal court’s ruling in Young v. Newton that Virginia’s Riverside Regional Jail’s Christians-only area of the facility — known as a "God Pod" — had…
A sign outside of the church encourages people to stop by for a “drive-by” mass at St. Martin in the Fields Episcopal Church on March 15, 2020 in Aurora. Colorado’s COVID-19 public health orders that limit the number of people who can attend indoor religious services and require worshippers to…
0 Colorado’s COVID-19 public health orders that limit the number of people who can attend indoor religious services and require worshippers to wear masks at all times are unconstitutional, a federal judge ruled. U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Domenico ruled last week that state officials cannot enforce mask-wearing mandates or…
On July 1, the state of Virginia enacted the “Virginia Values Act,” which bans discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. A companion law requires employers to include coverage for sex reassignment and “gender affirming” surgeries in their health plans. According to the Alliance Defending Freedom ,…
United States Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas recently signaled that he would favor a broad exception to anti-discrimination laws, writes columnist Erwin Chemerinsky. [Scott Bryant/savannahnow.com] Scott Bryant Hide caption This column was written by Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law. The Constitution protects religious beliefs. It…
In the pandemic’s early days, the American judiciary largely gave governors wide leeway in issuing unprecedented business-closure and stay-at-home orders in order to dampen the spread of the disease. More recently, some judges, concerned by the scope and duration of those orders, have taken steps to enforce constitutional limits on…
United States Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas recently signaled that he would favor a broad exception to anti-discrimination laws, writes columnist Erwin Chemerinsky. [Scott Bryant/savannahnow.com] Scott Bryant Hide caption This column was written by Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law. The Constitution protects religious beliefs. It…
Hide caption United States Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas recently signaled that he would favor a broad exception to anti-discrimination laws, writes columnist Erwin Chemerinsky. [Scott Bryant/savannahnow.com] Scott Bryant This column was written by Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law. The Constitution protects religious beliefs. It…
U.S. Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett indicated in her confirmation hearing that she would fit in comfortably with the conservative majority on the high court that has ruled in recent years for an expansive view of religious liberty. During her last day of questioning before the Senate Judiciary Committee…
Special to The Times The cesspool of our American culture is not the result of too much God, faith, or religion, but too little. With the pending confirmation hearing of nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, it is appropriate to review what our Constitution says about religion.…
The nine justices of the United States Supreme Court were photographed Nov. 30, 2018. Seated from left to right: Stephen G. Breyer, Clarence Thomas, John G. Roberts, Jr., Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Samuel A. Alito. Standing from left to right: Neil M. Gorsuch, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Brett M.…