In ruling the way it did, the Supreme Court protected the right of a religious organization to select its clergy without government interference and avoided placing church doctrine under government interpretation. Civil magistrates will not be in a position to where they are forced to determine which religious view, that of the clergy member or the church, is correct.
Archives for January 2012
Campaigning for Candidates from the Pulpit is a Bad Idea
As it now stands, churches and charities are welcome to speak truth to power on the issues that matter – from opposing human trafficking, to lobbying for workplace accommodation for religious employees, to pursuing justice. Religious organizations just cannot support or oppose particular candidates or political parties. This is a good thing.
In Nigeria, escalating religious conflict impacts Adventist Church (ANN)
Adventist News Network– Jan. 23, 2012 Abidjan, Ivory Coast Gilbert Weeh/ANN staff The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Nigeria is seeing a drop in church attendance and some church closures amid worsening religious conflict in the country. An upsurge of attacks against Christian churches by the extremist group Boko Haram beginning late last year has led […]
Ruling on Ministers: What the Supreme Court said & didn’t say | Oregon Faith Report
Excerpt: The U.S. Supreme Court in Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. EEOC, held that the “ministerial exception” bars a school teacher from bringing employment discrimination claims against her religious employer. The Court’s ruling clearly grants religious institutions the freedom to employ (and terminate) employees who act as ministers of their faith. Yet the […]
GOP to Consider Accommodating Saturday Sabbath Observers in Nevada Primaries
In the Republican primaries this year, there is a bright spot for religious freedom and diversity. Amy Tarkanian, the state GOP chairwoman told The Associate Press that she has asked the Republican National Committee to weigh in on whether the religious voters should be accommodated by moving their voting to Saturday night, or moved forward […]
Update: Iranian Pastor Nadarkhani Continues to Refuse to Renounce Christian Beliefs
Despite promises of release in return for compromise, imprisoned Iranian Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani continues to refuse to renounce his Christian faith and accept Islam. Although he has been without any Bible or electronic access for over two years, and no contact with the outside world except for his wife and children, Nardarkhani continues to refuse […]
Modern Torture Techniques Emerged from Inquisition reports “The Atlantic”
In the January/February 2012 issue of The Atlantic, Cullen Murphy writes about the history of torture and relates it to current events. Excerpt: “The new science of interrogation is not, in fact, so new at all: “extraordinary rendition” and “enhanced interrogation” and “waterboarding” all spring from the practices of the medieval Roman Catholic Church. The […]
10th Circuit Rules Oklahoma Amendment Barring Islamic Law was Unnecessary and Discriminatory
OKLAHOMA -The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a lower court’s ruling that blocked the implementation of the “Save Our State” amendment. The amendment, approved by 70 percent of Oklahoma voters in 2010, barred “Islamic law” in the state, even though there was no movement to impose sharia law in Oklahoma. Judge Scott […]
Has Obama Waged a War on Religion? (NPR)
NPR’s Barbara Bradley Hagerty addresses this question. Here is an excerpt followed by a link to the article: Americans’ religious liberties are under attack – or at least that’s what some conservatives say. Newt Gingrich warns the U.S. is becoming a secular country, which would be a “nightmare.” Rick Santorum says there’s a clash between […]
Conversation with Justice Ginsburg – C-SPAN
Professor Joan Williams spoke with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg about legal issues and the courts. Topics included abortion, gender equality, equal protection, the role of justices in political system, and working relationships between the justices. She responded to questions from the audience.