News from around the world. Curated by Mark McDowell. Posts do not constitute agreement or endorsement.
(Shutterstock via CNA) The Justice Department (DOJ) is backing a small community church suing Virginia Governor Ralph Northam, arguing that the state cannot single out churches for public health restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic. Lighthouse Fellowship Church on Virginia’s Eastern Shore filed suit last week against Northam’s stay-at-home order prohibiting…
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is siding with a Virginia church that filed a lawsuit against the state over Gov. Ralph Northam’s (D) stay-at-home order restricting in-person religious services to no more than 10 people amid the coronavirus outbreak. The Lighthouse Fellowship Church, a congregation in Chincoteague, Va., filed the…
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A federal appeals court on Saturday declined to block the Kentucky governor’s temporary ban on massing gatherings from applying to in-person religious services. The three-judge panel did clear the way for Maryville Baptist Church to hold drive-in worship services while adhering to public health requirements. That’s an…
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A federal appeals court on Saturday declined to block the Kentucky governor’s temporary ban on massing gatherings from applying to in-person religious services. The three-judge panel did clear the way for Maryville Baptist Church to hold drive-in worship services while adhering to public health requirements. That’s an…
A federal appeals court on Saturday declined to block the Kentucky governor’s temporary ban on massing gatherings from applying to in-person religious services. The three-judge panel did clear the way for Maryville Baptist Church to hold drive-in worship services while adhering to public health requirements. That’s an alternative that Democratic…
Masterpiece Cakeshop owner Jack Phillips decorates a cake inside his store in Lakewood, Colo., on March 10, 2014. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley, File) DENVER (CN) — A Denver judge denied a Christian baker’s motion to dismiss a discrimination lawsuit filed against him after he refused to make a birthday cake commemorating…
Masterpiece Cakeshop owner Jack Phillips decorates a cake inside his store in Lakewood, Colo., on March 10, 2014. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley, File) DENVER (CN) — A Denver judge denied a Christian baker’s motion to dismiss a discrimination lawsuit filed against him after he refused to make a birthday cake commemorating…
By Michael Hernandez CHINO HILLS—Senior attorneys for two California legal firms—Tyler and Bursch and the Pacific Justice Institute shared their legal expertise today on a zoom conference hosted by Chino Hills Calvary Pastor Jack Hibbs on “How and When to Re-Open Churches.” “According to Gov. Galvin Newsom, we are in…
PARKERSBURG — Attorneys for the City of Parkersburg and the Freedom from Religion Foundation have asked a federal judge to decide a lawsuit over the recitation of the Lord’s prayer by City Council members without a hearing. Both sides submitted a joint stipulation of facts to U.S. District Judge for…
The governor and two churches that sued over a stay-at-home order have reached a temporary truce in a case that entangles the coronavirus outbreak with issues of religious liberties. Wichita, Kansas — Gov. Laura Kelly filed a joint motion this weekend with two churches suing her over stay-at-home orders, signaling…
Mississippi state leaders plan to sue Chinese government over coronavirus outbreak Get all the latest news on coronavirus and more delivered daily to your inbox. Sign up here . A federal judge in Mississippi ruled Friday that the First Pentecostal Church of Holly Springs can stay open for drive-in services…
(FOX Carolina) (Greenville, SC/FOX Carolina) – Greenville County Schools Board of Trustees said Friday the district had filed an appeal on the court’s recent decision in the lawsuit filed by the American Humanist Association. On April 14, the 11-page order handed down from the U.S. District Court for South Carolina…
On Fire Christian Church has moved services outdoors, offering a drive-in fellowship, so the congregation may worship while social distancing. Louisville Courier Journal Case law as well as state statutes leave religious liberty well protected. Public officials should take note before regulating church services. U.S. District Judge Justin Walker of…
Apr 19, 2020 at 12:02 AM A number of religious organizations — mostly evangelical Protestant denominations — have issued challenges to state or local "shelter in place" regulations that prohibit religious gatherings. These challenges have no legitimate position in law. Yes, the U.S. Constitution has two provisions that might seem…
Demonstrators oppose stay-at-home orders during a rally last week at the Capitol in Lansing, Mich. Despite such challenges, the government has broad constitutional latitude to impose restrictions to protect public health. Can the government restrict individual liberties to stop the spread of COVID-19? It’s a question being raised by protesters…
Kansas Governor Laura Kelly (Photo by Mark Reinstein/Corbis via Getty Images) A federal judge delivered a blow to Kansas Governor Laura Kelly’s (D) ban on church gathering Saturday, allowing two local churches to conduct in-person, though socially-distanced, services. “Plaintiffs are likely to suffer irreparable harm in the form of denial…
Michael Stavola The Wichita Eagle WICHITA, Kan. — A U.S. District Court of Kansas judge issued a temporary restraining order on Saturday against part of Gov. Laura Kelly’s executive order that limited church gatherings to 10 or fewer people, a ruling that paves the way for in-person religious services without…
Pastor Jerel Hagerman conducts a drive-in “car church” Easter service in the parking lot of Joshua Springs Calvary Chapel amidst the coronavirus pandemic on April 12, 2020 in Yucca Valley, California. Slate is making its coronavirus coverage free for all readers. Subscribe to support our journalism. Start your free trial…
I blogged below about Judge Browning’s Free Exercise Clause analysis; but the church also raised an assembly clause challenge to the ban on gatherings of more than 5 people in places of worship. Such a challenge, if accepted, would have applied to nonreligious gatherings, too, but the judge rejected it…
State and local restrictions on religious gatherings, introduced as measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, have emerged as a top religious freedom issue and prompted a flurry of new lawsuits charging that such measures violate the First Amendment or state religious freedom statutes. The Alliance Defending Freedom, a…
LOUISVILLE, Ky., April 11, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — This afternoon, U.S. District Court Judge Justin Walker granted a temporary restraining order (TRO) preventing Louisville, Kentucky Mayor Greg Fischer from blocking On Fire Church from holding drive-in services on Easter. The TRO was filed yesterday in the United States District Court…
A San Francisco-based law firm is suing San Bernardino County over its order that residents must cover their faces in public and its ban on in-person religious gatherings. A letter sent by Dhillon Law Group on Wednesday, April 8, to the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors, says the order…
Apr 14, 2020 at 12:03 AM A number of religious organizations — mostly evangelical Protestant denominations — have issued challenges to state or local "shelter in place" regulations that prohibit religious gatherings. These challenges have no legitimate position in law. Yes, the U.S. Constitution has two provisions that might seem…
A woman follows along in her bible during the sermon at a drive-in service on April 5 in Louisville, Ky. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic limiting gatherings of people, churches have responded with alternate ways to have their services. Restrictions discriminate against religion Lengthy opinion possibly could have been avoided…
A few years ago, an LGBTQ couple approached Bethany Christian Services and expressed an interest in becoming foster parents. Bethany Christian, which maintained a contract with the city of Philadelphia to provide foster care, turned them down based on a religious opposition to same-sex unions. The Inquirer ran a story…