News from around the world. Curated by Mark McDowell. Posts do not constitute agreement or endorsement.
Next week the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in Shurtleff v. Boston , a freedom-of-speech case that concerns a flagpole on Boston’s City Hall Plaza. The facts of the controversy are simple. The issues at stake are profound. Related: Supreme Court agrees to review case involving right to fly…
“Global Respect Act” Disrespects Religious Liberty; Christians Win in European Court of Human Rights; Chinese Communists “Walk in Footsteps of Taliban”; To Forward a Spiritual Revival? University and Smithsonian to Study Role of Religion in Jan 6 Capitol Riot; Patheos Pulls Plug on Negative Religious Criticism “Global Respect Act” Disrespects…
“The UK Supreme Court engaged at length with the human rights arguments in this case and upheld the McArthurs’ rights to freedom of expression and religion,” Calvert said. On Jan. 6, the ECHR determined that Lee’s case was inadmissible because he had “failed to exhaust domestic remedies.” (photo: Sara Valenti…
FILE – Gov. Asa Hutchinson answers questions from the press Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2021, during the weekly briefing at the state Capitol. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Staci Vandagriff) Religious social media posts from Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson are unconstitutional, Americans United for Separation of Church and State said in a letter to the…
The cake was eventually made by another bakery A complaint by Northern Ireland gay rights activist Gareth Lee that he was discriminated against when the Christian owners of a Belfast bakery refused to make him a cake iced with the slogan "Support Gay Marriage" has been ruled inadmissible by the…
FILE – Gov. Asa Hutchinson answers questions from the press Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2021, during the weekly briefing at the state Capitol. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Staci Vandagriff) Religious social media posts from Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson are unconstitutional, Americans United for Separation of Church and State said in a letter to the…
COMMENTARY BY Mineman 3rd Class Daniel Kern stands topside rover watch on the flight deck aboard the USS Charleston during a visit to Apra Harbor, Guam, on December 16, 2021. Key Takeaways While it allowed service members to apply for religious exemptions to the mandate, it has not granted a…
FILE – Gov. Asa Hutchinson answers questions from the press Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2021, during the weekly briefing at the state Capitol. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Staci Vandagriff) Religious social media posts from Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson are unconstitutional, Americans United for Separation of Church and State said in a letter to the…
In one of many ongoing federal lawsuits challenging COVID-19 vaccine mandates across the country, Judge Reed O’Connor of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas issued a group of Navy SEALs and Naval Special Warfare personnel a resounding victory Jan. 3 in U.S. Navy Seals 1-26 v.…
A quirk of history and misaligned constitutional provisions soon could kill public charter schools in Washington state. A case before the U.S. Supreme Court would make that happen. A Supreme Court challenge to Maine’s ban on using taxpayer funds to enable rural kids to attend private religious schools might have…
“Because of Mebane’s conviction that the diversity of our strongly-held beliefs makes us greater, not weaker. And because of our commitment to show respect to all faiths, beliefs, and perspectives, Mebane’s City Council will no longer open with an invocation.” — Ed Hooks, Following a complaint lodged by the Freedom…
Houses of Worship Struggle to Rebuild Attendance; Michigan City Gets Ready for All-Muslim Government; New York Can Force Photographer to Take Pictures for Same-Sex Wedding; Archdiocese sues LAUSD, alleging it kept federal funds from Catholic schools; Maine Tuition Case Before SCOTUS; China Will Ban Foreigners From Offering Online Religious Services;…
Delhi High Court Rejects Suit Against Waseem Rizvis Book Muhammad For Allegedly Making Incendiary Statements Against Islam & Prophet Mohammed The Delhi High Court has rejected a suit filed against Syed Waseem Rizvi’s Book ‘ Muhammad ‘ alleging that it contained various demeaning and incendiary statements about Islam, Holy Quran…
Following a complaint lodged by the Freedom From Religion Foundation, Mebane council members will start their meetings with a moment of silence instead of a prayer. This is according to Mebane Mayor Ed Hooks, who during the Dec. 6 regular session said the city would transition from prayers to a…
United States Representative for Texas District 13 Ronny Jackson (File) WASHINGTON, D.C. (KVII) — United States Representative Ronny Jackson (TX-13) joined an amicus brief to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas in support of 35 Navy servicemembers who are seeking religious accommodations from the Department…
If a state pays for a student’s secular education, must it also pay for students’ religious education? That’s the question presented in Carson v. Makin , a case currently being argued at the Supreme Court. Maine, with a large area and small student population, pays for students to attend private,…
Rep. Jack Bergman and 37 House Republicans led by Rep. Mike Johnson, filed an Amicus Brief before the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas in support of 35 Navy service members seeking religious accommodations for the Department of Defense’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The brief states: “The…
Oklahoma Capitol (File Photo) OKLAHOMA CITY — As Christian supporters Monday erected what is believed to be the state’s first nativity scene in recent years inside the state Capitol, one watchdog group warned the state also must allow other displays on the same topic in the future. Alex Hilton, the…
The fact that religious freedom was first shows how important the Founding Fathers considered religious freedom to be. Article Tags Is the US Constitution hostile to religion? Is the US Constitution hostile to private education provided by sectarian i.e. , religious, institutions? Is the US Constitution hostile to parents determining…
Emilee Carpenter is seen in a Fox News Channel screengrab. An Upstate New York wedding photographer has lost her bid to refuse service to same-sex couples after a federal judge dismissed with prejudice her lawsuit against the state. Emilee Carpenter , a photographer and blogger based in the Southern Tier,…
The Framers of the Constitution gave the federal government no authority to restrict peaceful immigration. For the first century or so of US history, most foreigners wishing to move to the United States were legally free to do so. The Constitution delegates many specific powers to the federal government, but…
Three of Notre Dame Law School’s alumni were drawn back to campus at the beginning of the fall 2021 semester by the opportunity to work for the Law School’s new Religious Liberty Initiative . The groundbreaking initiative promotes and defends religious freedom for people of all faiths through scholarship, events,…
Comments by justices of the United State Supreme Court Dec. 8 indicate likely support for parents of Maine high school students who want to use government funding to send their children to sectarian schools. During oral arguments before the court in the case Carson v. Makin , justices in the…
The U.S. Supreme Court has signaled that it could require Maine to expand a public tuition benefit to religious high schools. The justices heard oral arguments Wednesday in a lawsuit that could have nationwide implications for school choice programs. Maine allows students in towns with no public high schools to…
The Supreme Court on Wednesday heard a case that’s going to put the Catholic-heavy roster of justices under a spotlight the size of one of those that they used to roll in for the opening of a new used-car lot. At issue was Carson v. Makin, a case out of…