The Washington Supreme Court ruled last week that a Spokane fire captain met his burden of proving that his free speech rights were restricted in violation of the First Amendment. The court ruled that the burden now shifts to the employer to show that it would have taken the same action even if he had not engaged in the protected religious conduct.
A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit that alleged that the State of California exceeded its powers when it passed a law removing all but medical exemptions to mandatory vaccination laws. In June 2015, California Governor Jerry Brown signed SB 277 into law, removing the ability of parents to claim religious belief exemptions to otherwise…
An eight-year conflict has left a Pennsylvania family struggling to practice their faith against a sewage ordinance in Sugar Grove Township, Pennsylvania. Joseph and Barbara Yoder, an Old Order Amish family, have been ordered by local courts to install an electric pump in their outhouse, an action that directly contradicts their religious beliefs.
Last summer, Hurricane Harvey created a wake of destruction across southeast Texas, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) stepped in to provide disaster-relief grants to some organizations. Under FEMA’s policy at the time, churches could receive funding to repair only those portions of their facilities where less than 50 percent of the space was used for religious purposes. As a result, schools or church-run hospitals and community centers could receive aid, but not church sanctuaries.
A brief outline of America’s top religious liberty issues in 2017.
Early Saturday morning, the U.S. Senate passed its version of a major tax bill. Although there are a number of indirect ramifications for religious institutions, the Senate bill keeps the Johnson Amendment intact.
Next Tuesday, December 5, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a difficult case that pits the free exercise of religion and free speech rights of a wedding cake maker against the anti-discrimination rights of a same-sex couple. The couple demands the cake; the baker refuses because he thinks he will be sinning. The question is – can the state of Colorado make him bake the cake?
Approximately 500 years ago, Martin Luther sparked a “Reformation” within the Roman Catholic Church that shook Europe. Slumbering minds awoke. Controversy erupted. An unstoppable movement was born. The Pope trembled. When the dust settled, countless Catholics-Turned-Protestant had abandoned their church. Fast-forward to today. Interdenominational cooperation has become the norm. Differences are being minimized. Many Protestant Churches seek unity…
“This life therefore is not righteousness, but growth in righteousness, not health, but healing, not being but becoming, not rest but exercise. We are not yet what we shall be, but we are growing toward it, the process is not yet finished, but it is going on, this is not the end, but it is…
When Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the doors of the Wittenberg church, it began a radical transformation of western thought and culture. But it wasn’t until the Bible was printed in the common languages that mainstream cultures began to embrace the radical truths presented in the Scriptures and the West was truly transformed. The historical effect…