Opinion: The death of a secular state

Opinion: The death of a secular state

Creative Commons Having been raised Baptist and then Methodist, I understand how important religion, especially Christianity, can be to many people. Furthermore, I have been in the public school system for 14 years, starting in kindergarten and continuing through college. I can absolutely understand why many parents choose to send…

GREG HARTON: Court guards religion as central to U.S. freedoms

Growing up, I had heard about Al Capone, the high-profile, Chicago-based crime boss who violently capitalized on bootlegging during Prohibition. When I became a reporter in Hot Springs, I became aware of a certain tourist-town pride that "Big Al" once owned a suite in the still-renowned Arlington Hotel. He enjoyed,…

Counterpoint: Religious Liberty Scores a Win at the Supreme Court

Counterpoint: Religious Liberty Scores a Win at the Supreme Court

Three religious freedom cases provide constitutionalists with some hope. In a year beset by disappointing decisions from the Supreme Court, a trio of religious liberty cases decided this term provides constitutionalists with some hope. Let’s review: Little Sisters of the Poor v. Pennsylvania The Little Sisters of the Poor need…

Why Supreme Court liberals joined conservatives on religion, by Noah Feldman

The Supreme Court has decided, 7-2, that teachers in Catholic elementary schools are not covered by employment discrimination law. This is a highly important expansion of religious exemptions from government regulation. The Supreme Court had already given religious institutions an exemption for so-called “ministerial” employees. It has now gone substantially…

Commentary: Why Supreme Court liberals joined conservatives on religion

Commentary: Why Supreme Court liberals joined conservatives on religion

The Supreme Court has decided, 7-2, that teachers in Catholic elementary schools are not covered by employment discrimination law. This is a highly important expansion of religious exemptions from government regulation. The Supreme Court had already given religious institutions an exemption for so-called “ministerial” employees. It has now gone substantially…

High court sparks new battle over church-state separation

High court sparks new battle over church-state separation

The U.S. Supreme Court is seen Tuesday, June 30, 2020 in Washington. The Supreme Court elated religious freedom advocates and alarmed secular groups with its Tuesday ruling on public funding for religious education, a decision whose long-term effect on the separation of church and state remains to be seen. In…

High court sparks new battle over church-state separation

High court sparks new battle over church-state separation

By DAVID CRARY and ELANA SCHOR, Associated Press The Supreme Court elated religious freedom advocates and alarmed secular groups with its Tuesday ruling on public funding for religious education, a decision whose long-term effect on the separation of church and state remains to be seen. In Espinoza v. Montana Department…

High court sparks new battle over church-state separation

High court sparks new battle over church-state separation

By DAVID CRARY and ELANA SCHOR, Associated Press The Supreme Court elated religious freedom advocates and alarmed secular groups with its Tuesday ruling on public funding for religious education, a decision whose long-term effect on the separation of church and state remains to be seen. In Espinoza v. Montana Department…

High court sparks new battle over church-state separation

High court sparks new battle over church-state separation

The Supreme Court elated religious freedom advocates and alarmed secular groups with its Tuesday ruling on public funding for religious education, a decision whose long-term effect on the separation of church and state remains to be seen. In Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, the high court ruled 5-4 that…

IDEAS: What is religious freedom?

IDEAS: What is religious freedom?

Note from Community Impact Editor Amelia Robinson: this commentary is set to appear on the Dayton Daily News Ideas and Voices page Sunday, July 5. This week’s guest columnists were asked to reflect on the notions of freedom and/or patriotism. Other columns to be featured on the page are embedded.…

Esbeck on the Establishment Clause after Espinoza v. Montana

Carl H. Esbeck (University of Missouri School of Law) has posted With the Supreme Court having Decided Espinoza v. Montana and Ordering the State to Fund Religious Schools: What’s Left of the Establishment Clause? on SSRN. Here is the abstract: Consistent with the Establishment Clause, the Supreme Court had permitted…

High court sparks new battle over church-state separation

By David Crary and Elana Schor – Associated Press The Supreme Court elated religious freedom advocates and alarmed secular groups with its Tuesday ruling on public funding for religious education, a decision whose long-term effect on the separation of church and state remains to be seen. In Espinoza v. Montana…

Court upholds abortion-related ruling against Catholic Church

Court upholds abortion-related ruling against Catholic Church

ALBANY – A mid-level appeals court Thursday unanimously rejected the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany’s effort to challenge a state regulation that requires health insurers to cover medically necessary abortions. In a 5-0 decision, the Appellate Division of state Supreme Court’s Third Department upheld a January 2019 ruling by state…

Victory: U.S. Supreme Court Overturns Discriminatory Law Preventing Students From Using Scholarships to Attend Religious Private Schools

Rejecting long-standing state laws that discriminate against religion, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that Montana must allow scholarships it provides to be used by families for tuition at religious schools. The Court’s 5-4 decision in Espinoza v. Mont. Dept. of Revenue found that a state constitutional provision restricting aid…

High court sparks new battle over church-state separation

High court sparks new battle over church-state separation

The U.S. Supreme Court is seen Tuesday, June 30, 2020 in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) The Supreme Court elated religious freedom advocates and alarmed secular groups with its Tuesday ruling on public funding for religious education, a decision whose long-term effect on the separation of church and state remains…

Court lays to rest age-old debate with Espinoza decision

Court lays to rest age-old debate with Espinoza decision

After more than a century, the U.S. Supreme Court finally has determined that Blaine amendments, which were created in the late 19 th century under a wave of anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic bias, violate the U.S. Constitution’s Free Exercise clause. “A State need not subsidize private education. But once a State…

High court sparks new battle over church-state separation

High court sparks new battle over church-state separation

This photo shows the U.S. Supreme Court building. (Source: CNN, File) (WJRT) (AP) – The Supreme Court elated religious freedom advocates and alarmed secular groups with its Tuesday ruling on public funding for religious education, a decision whose long-term effect on the separation of church and state remains to be…