Login | October 01, 2019 university of Massachusetts Lowell (THE CONVERSATION) A movement for religious rights is transforming the place of religion in American public life. From the 1960s until very recently, liberals successfully argued at the Supreme Court that the tyranny of the majority cannot define the lives and…
Religious discrimination bill so flawed it cannot be supported, Anglicans say
The flaws in the Coalition’s religious discrimination bill are “so serious” it cannot be supported in its current form, the Sydney Anglican diocese has warned. Bishop Michael Stead has warned the bill would force Anglican youth camps to host Satanist masses at its campsites and has the “perverse effect” of…
Veterans group pushes to dismiss suit over Bible on display
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A battle over a Bible on display at New Hampshire’s veterans hospital was the focus of a federal court hearing Wednesday, with lawyers for the government arguing that a lawsuit demanding its removal should be dismissed because the Air Force veteran who filed it hasn’t shown…
Constitutional shortcomings at CNU
An explanation of our separation of Church and State, or lack thereof “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition…
Rutherford Institute Challenges Discriminatory Law Preventing Students From Using Scholarships to Attend Private Schools With Religious Ties
WASHINGTON, DC — Denouncing state laws that claim to advocate for school choice while discriminating against individuals who favor private schools with religious ties, The Rutherford Institute has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reject a provision of Montana’s constitution that prohibits students from using scholarship funds to attend religiously-affiliated…
Borough accepting invocation applications
Members of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly hold a religious invocation during the Tuesday, Oct. 9, 2018, assembly meeting in Soldotna. The invocation was held only hours after the Alaska Superior Court ruled the ritual violated the Alaska Constitution. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion) Applications to offer invocations during Kenai…
Veterans group pushes to dismiss suit over Bible on display at Manchester VA Medical Center
CONCORD, N.H. — A battle over a Bible on display at New Hampshire’s veterans hospital was the focus of a federal court hearing Wednesday, with lawyers for the government arguing that a lawsuit demanding its removal should be dismissed because the Air Force veteran who filed it hasn’t shown he…
WILL, Scott Walker Submit Amicus to U.S. Supreme Court in School Choice Case
Gov. Scott Walker. Photo from the State of Wisconsin. The News : The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL), on behalf of Governor Scott Walker , filed an amicus brief to the United States Supreme Court in Espinoza v. Montana , a critical school choice and religious freedom case…
Religious liberty gaining momentum in court?
iStock photo PHOENIX, Ariz. (BP) — The Arizona Supreme Court last week rebuked states and municipalities that overzealously enforce anti-discrimination laws. The state’s highest court said the city of Phoenix cannot apply a nondiscrimination ordinance to the designers of custom wedding invitations. In a 5-3 decision, the court found Joanna…
The Arizona Supreme Court ruled two business owners did not have to make invitations for a same-sex wedding
Business owners win suit over same-sex wedding invitations 01:19 (CNN)A 2013 Phoenix law that adds "sexual orientation, gender identity or expression" to the city’s nondiscrimination ordinance violated the freedom of speech and religious beliefs of two business owners, the Arizona Supreme Court said in a 4-3 ruling Monday. Wedding invitation…
Christianity at the Supreme Court: From majority power to minority rights
Eds: This story was supplied by The Conversation for AP customers. The Associated Press does not guarantee the content. Morgan Marietta, University of Massachusetts Lowell (THE CONVERSATION) A movement for religious rights is transforming the place of religion in American public life. From the 1960s until very recently, liberals successfully…
Battle lines seen as hardening on religious liberty
A longstanding consensus on how to accommodate religious beliefs in government settings is breaking down as the U.S. Supreme Court appears poised to overturn longstanding precedent and allow greater role of religion in public life. Those were some of the observations of Nina Totenberg, the longtime legal affairs correspondent for…
Federal Judge Rules Ban on Conversion Therapy Doesn’t Violate First Amendment Rights
Plaintiff Christopher Doyle A federal judge on Friday dismissed a lawsuit challenging the state of Maryland’s law banning licensed practitioners from engaging in conversion therapy treatment with minors. The legislation was signed into law by Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) in May of 2018. The lawsuit was initially filed by…
Arizona Supreme Court gives Christian artists a lot less than they asked for
FILE – This Jan. 22, 2019 file photo shows Christian artists Joanna Duka, front left, and Breanna Koski, front right, outside the Arizona Supreme Court after justices heard arguments over Phoenix’s anti-discrimination ordinance that bars businesses from refusing service to same-sex couples for religion reasons. Duka and Koski, who operate…
Religious freedom for wedding invite designers
Joanna Duka (left) and Breanna Koski (right), owners of Brush & Nib Studio Last week, the Supreme Court of Arizona issued an important decision in Brush & Nib v. City of Phoenix , another case located squarely at the intersection of religious freedom and the new sexual orthodoxy. The case…
State Supreme Court rules in favor of religious rights
Attorney Jonathan Scruggs, of the Alliance Defending Freedom, speaks following his legal arguments in January at the Supreme Court that the sincerely held religious beliefs of business owners allows them to turn away gay customers. (Capitol Media Services file photos by Howard Fischer) By Howard Fischer, Capitol Media Services |…
Some Cleveland Leaders Want to Bring Back Legislative Prayer. They Can, and Should.
Jeremy Dys is deputy general counsel to First Liberty Institute, a non-profit law firm dedicated to defending religious freedom for all. Prayer at legislative gatherings is as old as the United States—perhaps older, if we reach back in time to the Pilgrims’ landing at Plymouth Rock. Legislative prayer is such…
Pensacola investigator sues employer, says he couldn’t share Christian faith at work
Skip to main content A Pensacola law enforcement officer is suing his state employer over claims he was unlawfully prevented from sharing his Christian beliefs in his workplace. In a federal civil trial that began Wednesday in Tallahassee, Kevin Fiedor claims that the Florida Department of Financial Services violated his…
Arizona court rules business can refuse to make same-sex wedding invites
Capitol Media Services PHOENIX — Anti-discrimination laws do not trump the rights of business owners to refuse to provide certain services to gays, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled Monday. In a divided decision, the majority concluded that the owners of Brush & Nib Studios have a constitutional right to refuse…
Wheaton College students sue city, say Millennium Park security restricted their religious activities
Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times A view of Cloud Gate, aka “The Bean,” in Millennium Park from the 32nd floor of 8 S. Michigan Ave., Thursday, May 30, 2019. | Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times Four Wheaton College students who were repeatedly stopped from open-air preaching and passing out evangelism literature in Millennium Park are…
County Zoning Proposal Sparks Concerns
A Deschutes County proposal to allow churches in areas zoned to help deer, elk and antelope has a land use group and a state agency concerned about the impacts on wildlife that need undisturbed tracts of land for habitat, food and migration. A proposal before the county planning commission seeks…
New Arizona Supreme Court ruling is a huge win for religious freedom
In what many have dubbed “Masterpiece Cakeshop 2.0,” the Arizona Supreme Court ruled Monday in a pivotal case regarding freedom of expression. The Arizona high court found that a Phoenix law violated the free speech rights of religious business owners Joanna Duka and Breanna Koski, owners of Brush & Nib…
Column: Court reinstates lawsuit against Catholic hospital for refusing transgender man’s surgery
Transgender activists rallied at the White House in October to protest the Trump administration’s anti-LGBTQ policies. Stating that California’s interest in fighting discrimination against LGBTQ residents outweighs the right to impose religious standards on healthcare, an appeals court has reinstated a lawsuit against the Catholic Dignity Health hospital chain for…
Arizona court: Business not required to print same-sex wedding invites
CNN image PHOENIX – A 2013 Phoenix law that adds "sexual orientation, gender identity or expression" to the city’s nondiscrimination ordinance violated the freedom of speech and religious beliefs of two business owners, the Arizona Supreme Court said in a 4-3 ruling Monday. Wedding invitation designers Joanna Duka and Breanna…
Court: Christian artists can refuse to make invites for same-sex wedding
PHOENIX (CNS) — Arizona’s Catholic bishops praised the state Supreme Court’s Sept. 16 decision upholding the refusal by two Christian artists to create custom wedding invitations for same-sex couples based on their religious belief in marriage as being between one man and one woman. “We are grateful that the importance…