Religion & Law

PBS rules New Orleans Affiliate may continue daily Mass broadcast

Posted on June 17, 2009
Catholic Culture: "A PBS board has ruled that its New Orleans affiliate-- which had been threatened with the loss of PBS programming-- may continue its daily Mass broadcasts from the archdiocesan cathedral."

Chuck Colson: Christian views on sanctity of life and religious freedom go hand in hand

Posted on June 17, 2009
Chuck Colson writes at the Christian Post: "But I think that Riley and the people at Pew have missed the real reason that Americans are both religious and tolerant. It?s because we remembered those lessons-we didn?t overlook them-the lessons, that is, that Christianity teaches about the dignity and sanctity of the person...

Pro-life Leader Slams Proposed State-Sponsored Sexualization of Latin American Children

Posted on June 17, 2009
Christian Newswire: "This is absolute nonsense! We know from almost every study on the topic that this is the exact opposite of the truth," said Fr. Euteneuer. "Condom promotion has not stopped HIV in the developing world. And propagandizing young children about a value-neutral approach to sex, and telling them that they'll be safe if they use condoms is exactly how you get them to start practicing sex before marriage...

?Obama: More benefits for gay workers only one step?

Posted on June 17, 2009
AP: We all have to acknowledge this is only one step," Obama said in the Oval Office, where he signed a memorandum that made incremental changes to benefits offered to the same-sex partners of gay federal employees.

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?What gays want from President Obama?

Posted on June 17, 2009
Marc Ambinder writing at The Atlantic: "What do gays want? They want the Recognizer in Chief, the Persuader in Chief, the Leader -- to recognize them. They want visibility; they want acknowledgment that Obama doesn't take their money and presidential support for granted; they want assurances -- words and deeds -- that Obama will fulfill his campaign promises...

ACLU Wisconsin: Mandatory contraception should prevail over religious freedom

Posted on June 17, 2009
ACLU Wisconsin: "The Wisconsin Assembly just gave the green light to their version of the state budget this weekend. Contraceptive equity was one of the debated items: the policy would require all insurance companies that provide prescriptions to include contraceptive drugs and devices in their coverage...

Board of Directors names Jarrett Barrios as President of GLAAD

Posted on June 17, 2009
GLAAD: "The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and GLAAD?s National Board of Directors today announced that Jarrett T. Barrios, a former State Senator from Massachusetts who now heads a leading health care foundation, will serve as GLAAD?s new President...

N.Y. bill to redefine marriage may get new life

Posted on June 17, 2009
Washington Times: "My fear is they [Republicans] could give the bill up in order to get Democrats to join the majority," said New York state Conservative Party Chairman Michael Long. "Some people are trying to use it as a bargaining chip."

Islam and constitutionalism: A modest introduction

Posted on June 17, 2009
Patrick S. O'Donnell writing at Ratio Juris: Minimally, constitutionalism means government can and should be legally limited in its powers, and that authority is derived from and depends upon those limitations. Such constitutionalism, in principle when not in practice, is part and parcel of Islamic history...

In D.C., same-sex ?marriage? battle heads to court

Posted on June 17, 2009
Keith L. Alexander reports in The Washington Post: "The plaintiffs are being represented by lawyers from the Alliance Defense Fund, a religious advocacy law firm. A scheduling conference has been set for Sept. 18. The plaintiffs asked for an expedited hearing before then...

?D.C. gay marriage referendum supporters petition court?

Posted on June 17, 2009
Mike DeBonis writes at the Washington City Paper's City Desk blog: "The lawyers for the referendum proponents?Steven H. Aden, Austin R. Nimocks, and Brian W. Raum?are all affiliated with the Alliance Defense Fund, a Christian conservative legal advocacy group founded in 1994 by a group of politically active evangelicals (including Focus of the Family?s James Dobson)...

Ontario Plans to Let Parents Leave 4-Year-Olds in School from 7:30am till 6pm

Posted on June 17, 2009
LifeSiteNews: "A sweeping change that would combine day care with kindergarten in Ontario schools is being proposed by Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty. The plan would allow parents of 4- and 5-year-olds to leave their children at school from 7:30 in the morning to 6 in the evening...

Obama Spends Tax Dollars to Demean Marriage, Appease Homosexual Activists and Encourage Fraud

Posted on June 17, 2009
Concerned Women for America: "It attempts to elevate relationships outside of marriage as if they are the same as marriage. Marriage provides unique benefits to individuals, families and society that cannot be replicated by any other living arrangements...

Eric Holder on Hate Crimes Bill: Master of Demagoguery

Posted on June 17, 2009
Catholic Leaugue: "Roeder was never involved in any pro-life organization, and von Brunn is an old man who was as much anti-Christian as he was anti-Semitic. In other words, it is nothing if not demagogic for Holder to exploit these two recent tragedies?committed by madmen, not political activists?as a rationale to promote this highly politicized piece of legislation...

?Group: Gay bias killings highest since 1999?

Posted on June 16, 2009
AP: "The number of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people killed in bias-motivated incidents increased by 28 percent in 2008 compared to a year ago, according to a national coalition of advocacy groups."

The ?Federal Strategy? to Impose Same-Sex ?Marriage?: Good News for Defenders of Marriage?

Posted on June 16, 2009
Helen Alvare writes at the Culture of Life Foundation: "Several powerful pro-same-sex marriage institutions are deeply distressed at the Boies/Olsen move, specifically on the ground that they do not believe that the U.S. Supreme Court is 'ready' to pronounce in their favor on the question of a constitutional mandate to permit same sex marriage...

NY: Judge clarifies constructive abandonment divorce standard over denial of sex

Posted on June 16, 2009
New York Law Journal: "A husband's refusal to have sex with his wife three times within a year was enough to persuade a Long Island judge to grant the wife's petition for a divorce on the ground of constructive abandonment." B.M. v. M.M., 203242/08 (NY Supr...

Ga. Supreme Court: ?Children can meet dad?s gay friends?

Posted on June 16, 2009
". . . The state high court?s decision overturned Fayette County Superior Court Judge Christopher Edwards? blanket prohibition against exposing the children to their father?s gay partners and friends."

?Terrorism Finance Laws Undermine American Muslims? Religious Freedom, Says ACLU?

Posted on June 16, 2009
ACLU: U.S. terrorism finance laws and policies unfairly prevent Muslim Americans from practicing their religion through charitable giving, create a climate of fear and distrust in law enforcement and undermine America's diplomatic efforts in Muslim countries, according to an American Civil Liberties Union report out today...

NY Times: ?A Bad Call on Gay Rights?

Posted on June 16, 2009
NY Times Editorial: The Obama administration, which came to office promising to protect gay rights but so far has not done much, actually struck a blow for the other side last week. It submitted a disturbing brief in support of the Defense of Marriage Act, which is the law that protects the right of states to not recognize same-sex marriages and denies same-sex married couples federal benefits...

DC Elections Board Rejects Referendum On Recognition of Same-Sex Marriages From Elsewhere

Posted on June 16, 2009
Religion Clause Blog: The Board, in In re Referendum Concerning the Jury and Marriage Amendment Act of 2009, (DC Bd. Elec., June 15, 2009), ruled that: "The Council has, through the Act, expressed its determination to clearly state that discrimination against same-sex couples who are validly married elsewhere is prohibited...

Oregon Court Rejects Selective Prosecution Claim In Faith Healing Death of Young Girl

Posted on June 16, 2009
Religion Clause Blog: "In Oregon City, Oregon, a state trial court judge has rejected a motion by Carl and Raylene Worthington that second-degree manslaughter and criminal mistreatment charges against them be dismissed."

Sotomayor Defends Ties to All-Female Club

Posted on June 16, 2009
NY Times: "Judge Sonia Sotomayor on Monday defended her membership in an all-female networking club, telling senators preparing for her Supreme Court confirmation hearing that the group did not discriminate in an inappropriate way."

?Gay marriage referendum denied?

Posted on June 16, 2009
Michael Neibauer reports in The Washington Examiner: "But Raum responded that court precedent, namely Dean v. District of Columbia, already bars all same-sex marriages in D.C. The 1995 D.C. Court of Appeals decision, certain to be at the heart of his appeal, held that the Superior Court clerk?s decision not to issue a marriage license to a gay couple was right and did not violate the Human Rights Act...

Caritas insurance plan calls for state scrutiny

Posted on June 16, 2009
Gavi Wolfe, Legislative counsel for the ACLU in Massachusetts, writes to the Boston Globe: "State law also requires that hospitals provide emergency contraception to rape victims. Is Caritas complying with that law? We urge the state to scrutinize the way this new plan actually operates...

Time for the environmental religion to have a Reformation

Posted on June 16, 2009
Adeline Vieusse writing in the Sydney Morning Herald: "With the decline of Christian religions in the 20th century, our societies have gone through a chaotic soul-searching era, some of us trying to fulfil spiritual cravings through Buddhism, others experimenting with free love or communism...

?Traditional marriage rallies ignored by media?

Posted on June 16, 2009
Warner Todd Huston reports at Canada Free Press: "On June 9 a rally that saw thousands of participants in support of traditional marriage assembled at Albany, New York, the state capitol. One month earlier, a similar rally was held in Midtown Manhattan that also saw thousands in attendance...

GOP Senator Offers Bill to Prohibit Health-Care Rationing Based on Obama?s ?Comparative Effectiveness Research?

Posted on June 16, 2009
A group of Republican lawmakers led by Sen. Jon Kyl (Ariz.) are introducing a bill that would prohibit any move by the federal government to ration health care based on results derived from federally funded comparative effectiveness research.

FactCheck.org skews hate crimes bill

Posted on June 16, 2009
Catholic League: "Factcheck.org has skewed the discussion, the effect of which is to make light of the concerns of religious conservatives. Those concerns are rooted in experience and are not the product of conjecture, something a check of the facts easily confirms...

Oh, boy! NYC moms sue, say baby sex tests wrong

Posted on June 16, 2009
AP: Six New York City mothers are suing the maker of a baby sex test that touted its product as "infallibly accurate," saying the test results they received were wrong.

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