Religion & Law

ACLJ: New Litigation Involving Planned Parenthood

Posted on January 14, 2009
ACLJ: “We have entered our formal appearance before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in a major case against Planned Parenthood. As I?m sure you?ve seen in the news over the past several months, there have been allegations that Planned Parenthood is engaged in inappropriate activities and misrepresentation in obtaining federal funds [...

During 1996 state election, Obama backed ?gay marriage?

Posted on January 14, 2009
Michael Foust reports in the Baptist Press: “In what likely will only add to the confusion over President-elect Obama’s position on the issue, recently recovered documents show that he supported the legalization of ‘gay marriage’ when running for Illinois state senate in 1996 ...

Coleman proposes conducting Minn. trial in stages

Posted on January 14, 2009
AP: “Minnesota’s disputed Senate election would extend well into February and probably beyond if a three-judge panel hearing a lawsuit by Republican Norm Coleman adopts his proposed trial schedule . . . Minnesota’s disputed Senate election would extend well into February and probably beyond if a three-judge panel hearing a lawsuit by Republican Norm Coleman [...

New bill proposes mandatory ultrasounds before abortions

Posted on January 14, 2009
KLTV.com reports: “Their first day just wrapped up, but the state legislature is already looking at two proposed bills on abortion. The first proposed bill aims at making a specialty ‘choose life’ license plate available to Texas drivers...

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Rome Conference: Three competing models of religious freedom in the U.S.

Posted on January 14, 2009
The Catholic Review Online reports: . . . The [Rome] conference Jan. 13 marked the 25th anniversary of formal diplomatic relations between the United States and the Holy See. It was the last of a series of five encounters sponsored over the past year by the U...

States and D.C. may be working at cross-purposes

Posted on January 14, 2009
The AP reports: . . . States are trying to balance their budgets by raising taxes, chopping programs and cutting spending in 2009. And some economists and lawmakers worry those steps could undercut Obama’s efforts to stimulate the economy . . ...

Defending Marriage: A Memo to President-elect Obama

Posted on January 14, 2009
Thomas M. Messner and Jennifer A. Marshall write in Heritage Foundation Special Report #46: I believe that marriage is the union between a man and a woman. ?Barack Obama, Saddleback Presidential Candidates Forum, August 17, 2008 I do not support gay marriage...

The Intolerance of Those Demanding Tolerance

Posted on January 13, 2009
Gary Kreep writes on the United States Justice Foundation site: . . . The intolerance of certain elements in the homosexual community is nothing new. They have been emboldened by their recent successes in the courts, which have created new rights out of “whole cloth,” and their ultimate goal is to destroy all opposition to their [...

Sex and the Seminary?

Posted on January 13, 2009
Albert Mohler writes: The release of a report entitled “Sex and the Seminary” is certain to attract attention — which is no doubt why the report was produced in the first place. In this case, the report is an attempt to push the sexual revolution through institutions designed for the training of ministers ...

MN: Pussycat Cabaret attorney challenges city?s ordinance

Posted on January 13, 2009
The Post-Bulletin reports: “[Attorney Randall] Tigue, of Golden Valley, has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court against Zumbro Falls on behalf of his client, the Pussycat Cabaret LLC, which wants to open an establishment featuring nude dancing in the city...

U.K. Mother Pregnant with Siamese Twins Resists Abortion Pressure

Posted on January 13, 2009
LifeSiteNews.com reports: “Lisa Chamberlain, 25, pregnant with dicephalus twins who have separate heads but share a single body, is determined to allow her conjoined daughters a chance at life, despite doctors advice to kill the children in utero ...

EU Votes this Week to Push Same-Sex Civil Unions on all Member States

Posted on January 13, 2009
The European Parliament is set to vote this week on a resolution that will promote abortion and same-sex unions throughout the European Union. The resolution, authored by Giusto Catania, an Italian Communist . . .

Wash. court rules that truants entitled to lawyer

Posted on January 13, 2009
The Washington state Court of Appeals ruled Monday that denying a juvenile the right to a lawyer from the outset violated constitutional requirements.

NC: Church Members Threatened with Citation for Sharing Gospel in Park

Posted on January 13, 2009
Liberty Counsel has issued this press release that begins:  Today, Liberty Counsel is filing a federal lawsuit against the North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation, alleging that the state policy used by park officials to threaten citation of members of Grace Baptist Church violates their right to freedom of speech  The press release indicates that the [...

The New Kindergarten

Posted on January 13, 2009
Another troubling aspect of the ­pre-­K movement is that it is a retreat from parental choice in early childhood arrangements, an approach that has been nurtured since the passage of the block grant bill in 1990.

Georgetown decrees welcome for ??gays?

Posted on January 13, 2009
Julie Duin writes in the Washington Times:  ”Last week, I got a curious tip. Protestants at Georgetown University have been directed to sponsor an event to be “welcoming” to the new campus gay rights center. Leaders of Georgetown’s council of 12 Protestant ministries are meeting Jan...

Cal Thomas: ?Jindal to GOP: Repent!?

Posted on January 13, 2009
Cal Thomas writes on Townhall:  As a practicing Roman Catholic, Louisiana’s Republican governor, Bobby Jindal, knows a lot about repentance and penance. And in an interview last Wednesday at the governor’s mansion, Jindal sounded a lot like a preacher listing the sins of a party he hopes will soon see the light ...

Pro-Life Pivot: How the movement shifted focus, changed its image, and saved lives

Posted on January 13, 2009
WorldMagazine carries this report that offers a history of pro-life communication strategies with the American public. It reports:  The public has responded: 51 percent of Americans now tell pollsters that abortion is morally wrong, with 40 percent saying it’s morally OK; that’s an improvement from 20 years ago...

California: Dad accused of selling girl into marriage for cash, beer

Posted on January 13, 2009
The Houston Chronicle reports:  Greenfield Police Chief Joe Grebmeier said on Monday that his officers keep hearing rumors of arranged marriages between girls and older men . . . Until one case broke last weekend, Grebmeier said, it has been difficult for police to look into the stories ...

Focus on the Family?s Option Ultrasound Program Celebrates 5 Years

Posted on January 13, 2009
Citizen Link reports: Potentially, as many as 63,000 babies have been saved, thanks to Focus on the Family’s Option Ultrasound Program (OUP) . . .  ”To all the women who have been impacted by the Option Ultrasound Program, may God bless you for choosing life for your babies,” Dr...

Wyoming legislators to consider marriage amendment

Posted on January 13, 2009
"Some Wyoming lawmakers are pushing to amend the state constitution to specify that Wyoming won't recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states . . . "

Time-release educational program challenged in Indiana

Posted on January 13, 2009
OneNewsNow.com reports:  The Alliance Defense Fund has filed a friend-of-the-court brief in defense of an Indiana school district. The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a lawsuit against Huntington County, Indiana’s eight elementary schools after a parent and a student complained that a released-time program violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment ...

School officials want a cut of federal bailout

Posted on January 13, 2009
USA Today:  . . . Mike Petrilli of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, a Washington think tank, says many districts’ financial woes can be traced to long-term teacher contracts that have locked them into automatic raises and growing pension expenditures without the flexibility to cut costs “in a smart way...

Pennsylvania: Teens face porn charges in ?sexting?

Posted on January 13, 2009
The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports: Three Greensburg Salem students who allegedly sent nude or semi-nude photographs of themselves via their cell phones and three male students who received the photos are facing pornography charges . . . Rullo said her experience shows that many students don’t realize the consequences, even if their parents do...

Risky Business: Keynes, Moral Hazard, and the Economic Crisis

Posted on January 13, 2009
Samuel Gregg writes on Public Discourse: . . . . Though many?if not most?of his ideas were discredited by the stagflation that crippled Western economies in the 1970s, Lord Keynes seems to be back in fashion today. A little discussed question, however, is whether Keynesian-inspired policies are more likely in the long-run to actually foster one of [...

Horizontal Federalism

Posted on January 13, 2009
The Constitution allocates sovereign power between governments along two dimensions: a vertical plane that establishes a hierarchy and boundaries between federal and state authority, and a horizontal plane that attempts to coordinate fifty coequal states that must peaceably coexist.

Is the Family at Odds with Equality? The Legal Implications of Equality for Children

Posted on January 13, 2009
This Article revisits the liberal dilemma and suggests that one plausible version of liberalism can, at least in principle, combine wide diversity and freedom in family life with equal opportunity for children.

Natural Selection, Irreducible Complexity: A Contrarian Approach to the Intelligent Design Debate

Posted on January 13, 2009
This article concerns a subject about which a great deal has been said, and over which many people have drawn battle lines. I believe, however, that I offer a different view. I myself believe that natural selection explains the origin of species. I think it is improbable that theories of irreducible complexity and intelligent design, which I shall explain and discuss here, provide answers...

The Intersection of Zoning Regulations, Religious House Meetings, and the Constitution

Posted on January 13, 2009
This Note will explore the legal issues surrounding religious house meetings. Part II will provide both an overview of house churches, including their historical and present significance, and an overview of constitutional law pertaining to zoning regulations...

Of Non-Horses, Quantum Mechanics, and the Establishment Clause

Posted on January 13, 2009
This article argues that the quest for neutrality that has dominated a half-century of Establishment Clause jurisprudence is fundamentally misguided. Drawing a clue from an ancient Chinese philosopher, the article suggests that it is no more possible to be neutral "between religion and non-religion" than it would be to be neither a horse nor a non-horse.

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