BREAKING NEWS: President Obama Creates New Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships
By Derek H. Davis, J.D., Ph.D. Excerpt: “President Barack Obama signed an executive order on Thursday, February 5, to create the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships. The office replaces the controversial Office of Faith-based and Community Initiatives that George W. Bush created to provide government grants to churches and other faith-based organizations to administer welfare programs. “The goal of this office will not be to favor one religious group over another–or even religious groups over secular groups,” Obama stated when announcing the new office at the annual National Prayer Breakfast. The purpose, he said, “will simply be to work on behalf of those organizations that want to work on behalf of our communities, and to do so without blurring the line that our founders wisely drew between church and state.”
Read MoreEmbracing Exclusivity: How civic religion at inauguration abridges religious freedom
By Michael Newdow – EXCERPT: “Two months ago, when the American people chose Barack Obama to serve in the highest office in the land, it seemed that Homer Plessy’s dream had finally been realized. America, we thought then, truly stands for the justice and equality guaranteed in its Constitution. Yet, in a few days, as our new president steps up to the inaugural podium, the reality will be that government-sanctioned favoritism – now for religion, instead of race – will continue.”
Read MoreThe First Baptist in America (Florida Baptist Witness)
The earliest Baptists in America stemmed from a group of like-minded individuals who surrounded Roger Williams. It was on Feb. 5, 1631, that Roger Williams (1603-1683) and his wife sailed from Bristol on the ship Lyon and landed at Nantasket, in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
Read MoreANALYSIS: The Apocalyptic struggle between Jefferson’s Wall and the Church
By Bill Cork – EXCERPT: “Let’s be careful that we speak not only of religious liberty, but that we uphold the American tradition of separation of church and state as well. It has served us well. It allows individuals to be guided by their own religious teachings and morals, but it does not give a privileged place to any church. It affirms the freedom of individuals to believe, and to act in accordance with those beliefs, without fear. If that freedom is threatened–and I agree with Stafford that it is–then the solution is not to tear down the wall, but to build it even higher.”
Read MoreWorkplace Discrimination Claims On the Rise (BeliefNet – RNS)
The proposed Workplace Religious Freedom Act would provide greater protections but has languished in Congress for more than a decade, despite broad bipartisan support and support from an unusually diverse range of religious groups.
Read MoreUS Says Kyrgyz Law Would Restrict Religious Freedom (VOA News)
U.S. lawmakers are urging Kyrgyzstan’s president not to sign legislation they say will severely restrict religious freedom in the Central Asian country.
Read MoreReligious group promotes new Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom that stands against secularism
Thanks to Pastor John Bechtel for forwarding information about a movement to expand the definition of the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom to include more representation for religious ideas in government policy. It is yet another volley in the culture wars between secularists and those who would seek to abolish the sepaaration of church and […]
Read MoreOn Cardinal Stafford’s Speech: Are the Church and the State on an Unavoidable Collision Course?
On November 13, 2008 J. Francis Cardinal Stafford spoke before the International Conference to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute on Marriage and the Family at the Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C. His speech attracted singificant attention for its controversial viewpoint. You can read the full text of the speech by clicking here. Dr. Robert Moon, a member of the ReligiousLiberty.TV advisory panel responds.
Read MoreBurma launches new crackdown on religious groups
EXCERPT: Burma’s military junta has begun a new round of anti-Christian campaigning, pro-democracy activists have claimed. On Jan 13 the Democratic Voice of Burma reported the Ministry of Religious Affairs had ordered the closure of the city’s house churches.
Read MoreHuman Rights Nightmare: Indian mafia gangs are deliberately crippling children for profit (DailyMail.co.uk)
EXCERPT: Now in hiding after being rescued from the hospital by a charity, Aamir is one of hundreds of Indian children deliberately crippled by gangs so they can earn extra money begging. He still struggles to talk about his experience.
Read More