EXCERPT: Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain said Thursday an effort by local Muslims to build a large mosque here is an attempt to “sneak” Shariah law into the fabric of the U.S. legal system. “I think it is an infringement and abuse of our freedom of religion, and I don’t agree with what’s happening here…
Author: Martin Surridge
Article18: Cuba — Three Protestant Pastors Interrogated; Roman Catholic Church in Havana Helps Free 126 Prisoners of Conscience
Like the classic American cars that drive up and down Havana’s hot streets, communist Cuba is a country from another era–Cold War isolationism, a American trade embargo that began fifty years ago, and a pair of aging dictator-brothers who have ruled the nation and restricted its freedom for decades. But while Cuba may be living in the past in many respects, its religious freedoms are a curious blend of old-fashioned totalitarian crackdown and modern globalist acquiescence.
Thailand Calls for Ban on Religious Tattoos for Tourists (CNN)
EXCERPT: Thailand’s Culture Ministry wants to ban tourists from getting religious tattoos after noticing an alarmingly high number of foreigners sporting deities that were inked in parlors in Bangkok, Phuket and Chiang Mai. As the Phuket Gazette reports, Culture Minister Niphit Intharasombat told reporters this week that Phuket’s Culture Office had noticed many tourists are getting inked…
Appeals Court Lifts Ban on Texas Graduation Prayer (AP)
EXCERPT: Public prayer will be allowed at a Texas high school graduation after a federal appeals court on Friday reversed a ban won by an agnostic family that claimed ceremony traditions such as invocations were unconstitutional. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted an emergency appeal filed by the Medina Valley Independent School District….
Article18: Saudi Arabia — Prominent Saudi Cleric Hopes Women Who Violate Driving Ban Incur Wrath of God and Die
By Martin Surridge – Of the dozen or so countries that Article18 has profiled so far, Saudi Arabia might be the most repressive when it comes to religious freedoms. The famously oil-rich Middle Eastern nation is one of the world’s few remaining absolute monarchies, and the west consistently turns a blind eye towards its human…
Church for Single Mormons Comes with Pressure to Marry (Washington Post)
EXCERPT: It’s Tuesday night Bible study, which at this Crystal City Mormon chapel looks a bit like a mixer. Pews are filled with people in jeans and flip-flops, many texting. The night begins with a prayer before segueing quickly into an ice-breaker trivia game and a pizza social. Not surprising for a church made up…
Religious Liberty on North Dakota Ballot (Devils Lake Journal)
EXCERPT: A North Dakota constitutional amendment about religious freedom will be on the state ballot next year. Secretary of State Al Jaeger says Wednesday that the initiative’s supporters got enough signatures to put the issue to a vote. It will be Measure 3 on the June primary election ballot. The proposed amendment says lawmakers may…
Proposal to Ban Circumcision Draws Strong Criticism (Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty)
EXCERPT: At Religion Clause, Howard Friedman notes that Santa Monica could become the second California city to place on the 2012 ballot a ban on circumcision. A similar measure will be up for public referendum in San Francisco, prompting fierce opposition by many religious liberty advocates and others. Here’s a sample: The SF Chronicle’s editorial…
Article18: Mexico — Confirmed Presence of Major Islamic Terrorist Group Near U.S. Border; Former Killer Preaches to Violent Gangsters
By Martin Surridge – The last week has brought some changes to Article18. In addition to the added subtitles for each article, a new emblem is featured at the bottom of each entry, created by artist and musician Bradley Kenyon, who also made the globe logo for Article18. I want to thank Bradley for his…
Judge Rules Against Plaintiffs Claiming Murfreesboro Mosque Violated Their Rights (The Republic)
EXCERPT: A judge has ruled that the construction of a new mosque in Rutherford County does not harm the residents who sued the county over it, but allowed them to move forward on claims the county violated an open meetings law. Plaintiffs’ attorney Joe Brandon Jr. had argued that the mosque violated his clients’ constitutional…