News from around the world. Curated by Mark McDowell. Posts do not constitute agreement or endorsement.
Some say football is a religion, but does fervent support for Rangers FC amount to “philosophical belief”? Durham University final year student Beatrice Hale looks into an unusual employment tribunal case Rangers FC — image via Wiki Commons/Archibald99 The Employment Tribunal in Glasgow recently handed down its judgment in the…
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is filing a major lawsuit today against South Carolina officials on behalf of four Palmetto State citizens challenging the unconstitutional funding of a private religious school. “An upstate Christian organization that’s raising money to build a $14 million residential school for disadvantaged and at-risk youth…
Kentucky wedding photography A federal judge in Kentucky enjoined enforcement of Louisville’s nondiscrimination law (the “Fairness Ordinance”), which bars businesses from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation, against a wedding photographer who objects to same-sex marriage on religious grounds. The city, the court ruled, “cannot compel [plaintiff Chelsey] Nelson…
The school says that officially recognizing the club goes against its religious beliefs and violates its First Amendment rights. WASHINGTON (CN) — An Orthodox Jewish university asked the Supreme Court on Monday to block a ruling that would force it to officially recognize an LGBTQ club on campus. Yeshiva University…
Notre Dame Law School via AP In the image from video provided by Notre Dame Law School, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Altio speaks at the Notre Dame Law School’s Religious Liberty Summit in Rome, on July 21, 2022. Conservative defenders of religious liberty are pushing a new version of an…
Christian business owner continues to challenge law to deny websites to same-sex couples FILE – In this Sept. 1, 2021 file photo Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser talks about a grand jury investigation into the death of Elijah McClain, a Black man who was put in a chokehold by police…
This photo shows the U.S. Supreme Court Building, Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012 in Washington. A draft opinion circulated among Supreme Court justices suggests that a majority of high court has thrown support behind overturning the 1973 case Roe v. Wade that legalized abortion nationwide, according to a report published Monday…
The Law at Work The U.S. Supreme Court recently heard argument on the case of a public high school football coach who lost his job for refusing to discontinue his practice of silently praying with willing members of his team and others on the 50-yard line after games, win or…
Captain Sukhbir Toor, who with three other Sikhs sued the U.S. Marine Corps April 11, 2022. | Sikh Coalition A group of four Sikh men are seeking a religious exemption from the Marine Corps allowing them to keep the beards and turbans that they say are essential to the practice…
From Lasche v. N.J. , decided yesterday by the Third Circuit, in an opinion by Judge Peter Phipps, joined by Judges Thomas Hardiman and Robert Cowen: Two foster parents with religious views against same-sex marriage and homosexual conduct had their foster child removed and their foster license suspended. The foster…
Three families are suing Maine to require the state to pay tuition to the religious school of their choice. These families and the First Liberty Institute, the Christian Nationalist quasi-law firm defending them, believe freedom of religion includes forcing the state to finance religious education. However, freedom of religion also…
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…
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 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…
Photo by Joel Muniz via Unsplash Landmark Religious Freedom Case in Maine Reaches Supreme Court By Movieguide® Staff The U.S. Supreme Court recently agreed to hear arguments against a Maine law that bars parents from using state student-aid programs if their children attend faith-based schools. Carson v. Makin will take…
Photo by Ed Us/Unsplash/Creative Commons (RNS) — The Ninth District Court of Appeals on Sunday (Nov. 28) temporarily blocked San Diego Unified School District’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate from taking effect, one day before students were required to have their first dose. This move comes after a 16-year-old high school student…
My Faith Votes recently sat down with Brad Dacus to discuss his views on the troubles we currently face in America. Brad is the Founder and President of the Pacific Justice Institute (PJI), a legal defense organization providing representation in matters involving the exercise of religion and other civil liberties.…
Texas’ recent bill banning most abortions after six weeks may be upended by perhaps the most unexpected group of all, religious zealots who worship Satan. The Satanic Temple has established a “religious abortion ritual” that they claim will be trampled on given the Texas law enacted in May that bans…
Earlier this year I wrote an article arguing that the local church is essential. No matter what the government says, God’s word makes it clear that believers are called to continue gathering together for fellowship (Hebrews 10:24-25). The government can tell Christians to stop stepping over the entrance of the…
Churches want to turn American democracy upside down by advocating for representation without taxation. To meet the requirements of tax-exempt nonprofits, churches and secular 501(c)(3) charitable organizations “may not attempt to influence legislation as a substantial part of its activities and it may not participate at all in campaign activity…
Image: Sebastian Pichler/Unsplash The Supreme Court ended Roe v. Wade . When the court finally got around to issuing the reprehensible 5-4 shadow docket decision on Texas’s bounty-hunting, 2-week abortion ban, which had already gone into effect and is spreading to other states , the utter dereliction of duty and…
Covid-19 has spurred an outbreak of a different kind: litigation. To combat the pandemic, officials imposed extensive community-level mitigation measures using their broad but largely untested emergency powers. In response, more than 1000 suits challenged orders shuttering businesses, banning indoor worship services, restricting travel, and mandating mask wearing. 1 As…
Grooms at a gay wedding – Photo: Alvin Mahmudov, via Unsplash. A federal appeals court has ruled against a graphic designer who sued the state of Colorado in an attempt to overturn the state’s law prohibiting anti-LGBTQ discrimination in public accommodations. Lorie Smith, the owner of 303 Creative, creates graphic…
Just In… Last summer, I wrote , “The Supreme Court has never been more protective of religious freedom in its history.” This term, the court’s “pro-religion” streak has continued — and then some. First, there were the COVID-19 cases. Initially, the court was reluctant to grant emergency relief, declining to…
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court agreed on Friday to decide whether Maine may exclude religious schools that offer sectarian education from a state tuition program. The case, Carson v. Makin, No. 20-1088, is broadly similar to one from Montana decided by the court last year. In that case, the court…