News from around the world. Curated by Mark McDowell. Posts do not constitute agreement or endorsement.
During the last week of June, the U.S. Supreme Court issued rulings in two cases— 303 Creative v. Elenis and Groff v. Dejoy —that further protects the basic rights of Americans to free speech and religious liberty. Here’s the run-down of what you should know about two of the most…
On June 29, 2023, the United States Supreme Court (“Court”) issued a unanimous opinion in Groff v. DeJoy, finding that the employer-friendly de minimis standard for determining whether an employer would suffer an undue hardship by granting a religious accommodation to an employee is incompatible with the text of Title…
Key Takeaways: With its decision in Groff v. DeJoy , the Supreme Court has ruled that an employer must demonstrate granting a religious accommodation would result in substantial increased costs to the employer to justify an accommodation denial. The 9-0 decision nullified a line of lower court cases permitting an…
A federal court has decided that Christian Identity be recognized as an official religion in the Michigan state prison system. Lawyers for two inmates in the Michigan Department of Corrections successfully argued that their clients’ religious beliefs should be welcomed like other faith philosophies, despite organizations like the Anti-Defamation League…
Does a Colorado designer’s belief that marriage is between one man and one woman merit an exemption to state law barring discrimination against LGBTQ+ people? On June 30, 2023, the Supreme Court decided 6-3 that the answer is yes: Requiring a conservative Christian business owner to create wedding websites for…
Does a Colorado designer’s belief that marriage is between one man and one woman merit an exemption to state law barring discrimination against LGBTQ+ people? On June 30, 2023, the Supreme Court decided 6-3 that the answer is yes: Requiring a conservative Christian business owner to create wedding websites for…
Happy 247th Birthday, America! To what extent are we a “Christian nation” with a “Christian government?” Can we truly celebrate religious diversity? I asked those questions in my March 9, 2020 open forum, over which the DN-R editorial staff placed the headline: “US Was Founded As A Secular Nation.” I…
Protesters are seen in front of the Supreme Court ahead of Friday’s rulings. Photo by Ken Cedeno/UPI | July 3 (UPI) — Does a Colorado designer’s belief that marriage is between one man and one woman merit an exemption to state law barring discrimination against LGBTQ+ people? On Friday, the…
A case in which the Oregon Court of Appeals ruled that a bakery violated the state’s civil rights law by refusing to make a wedding cake for a lesbian couple has been returned to the Oregon Court of Appeals by the US Supreme Court. Wikimedia Commons/Senate Democrats The US Supreme…
Web designer Lorie Smith, plaintiff in a Supreme Court case who objects to same-sex marriage, poses for a portrait at her office in Littleton, Colorado, U.S., November 28, 2022. REUTERS/Kevin Mohatt/ The US Supreme Court ruled Friday that some private businesses can refuse service to same-sex couples for religious reasons,…
COMMENTARY BY the Supreme Court upheld the right of an employee to be granted a religious accommodation by his employer unless doing so would substantially affect the employer’s business. boonchai wedmakawand / Getty Images Key Takeaways In Groff v. DeJoy, the high court reiterated that employees must not be forced…
Conservative justices form 6-3 majority in case Web designer Lorie Smith poses for a portrait at her office in Littleton, Colo., in this photo taken Nov. 28, 2022. On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favour of Smith in a dispute over protections for freedom of speech under the…
The US Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on April 21, 2023. Christian postal worker protested denial of Sunday off Religious groups wanted Title VII ‘undue hardship’ to mirror ADA The US Supreme Court unanimously created a higher standard for employers to measure the burden a worker’s religious accommodation request would…
Sarah Parshall Perry is a senior legal fellow in the Edwin Meese III Center for Legal and Judicial Studies at The Heritage Foundation. In a unanimous decision authored by Justice Samuel Alito, the Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the right of an employee to be granted a religious accommodation by…
Topline The Supreme Court opened the door to more employees being granted accommodations for their religion at work Thursday, throwing out a ruling against a former postal worker who wanted to take off Sundays for religious reasons and clarifying when workplaces can refuse to accommodate workers’ religion—though it didn’t overturn…
Steve Fair On June 5, Oklahoma became the first state in the country to approve a religious charter school. The 3-2 vote will allow St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual Charter School’s application to receive Oklahoma tax dollars. Immediately after the vote, Dr. Robert Franklin, the board chairman, resigned. Franklin…
First it was wedding cakes, and now it’s wedding websites. Conservatives who oppose same-sex marriage are testing the line between religious freedom and unlawful discrimination. Looking for a federal law to be declared unconstitutional? Religion may well be your best bet — and that’s true regardless of how “real” your…
Texas wants to post the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms. Other states want to bring religion back to schools and public spaces. It ought to be a no brainer — they cannot do that. The Supreme Court long ago said all this was unconstitutional. But don’t be surprised if…
Local advisory committees on religious education may not exclude humanists, the High Court has found. In a landmark ruling on Friday, the High Court determined that Kent County Council acted unlawfully in barring a humanist from joining a Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education (SACRE) as a full member. Judge…
FILE – The Supreme Court is seen on April 21, 2023, in Washington. A unanimous Supreme Court has given a 94-year-old Minneapolis woman a new chance to recoup some money after the county kept the entire $40,000 when it sold her condominium over a small unpaid tax bill. The justices…
A copy of the Ten Commandments in stone hangs on a building next to the Pickens County Courthouse in Jasper, Ga., in October. The inspiration for Sen. Phil King’s bill is the 2022 Supreme Court case Kennedy v. Bremerton about a coach’s prayers. Our state senators recently emerged from their…
This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Pastor Jim Loomer, right, speaks during news conference in front of Milford Christian Church, in Milford, Conn. March 10, 2023. Loomer is seen here with attorney Brian Festa of We The Patriots USA. MILFORD — The state’s attorney general…
Pastor Jim Loomer, right, speaks during news conference in front of Milford Christian Church, in Milford, Conn. March 10, 2023. Loomer is seen here with attorney Brian Festa of We The Patriots USA. MILFORD — The state’s attorney general has asked a federal judge to throw a lawsuit filed by…
Pastor Jim Loomer, right, speaks during news conference in front of Milford Christian Church, in Milford, Conn. March 10, 2023. Loomer is seen here with attorney Brian Festa of We The Patriots USA. MILFORD — The state’s attorney general has asked a federal judge to throw a lawsuit filed by…
SANTA ANA, California – The Justice Department has filed a statement of interest in a federal lawsuit explaining that the act of distributing food and drinks to people who are homeless by Micah’s Way, a faith-based organization in Santa Ana that helps people in need, could be religious exercise under…