EXCERPT from American Baptist Press: WASHINGTON (ABP) — With the Supreme Court’s oldest and longest-serving member announcing April 9 his retirement, advocates for strong church-state separation urged that Justice John Paul Stevens’ replacement be as devoted to preventing government establishment of religion as the retiring jurist. However, some called for a successor who can improve…
Category: Current Events
French PM advised against total Islamic veil ban
EXCERPT from BBC News (link below): France’s top administrative body has advised the government that any total ban on face-covering Islamic veils could be unconstitutional. The State Council also said a ban could be justified in some public places. Prime Minster Francois Fillon had asked the council for a legal opinion before drawing up a…
RLTV PODCAST: Ryan Bell – “I’m a Social Justice Christian”
Ryan Bell, pastor of the Hollywood Seventh-day Adventist Church talks with Michael Peabody about Glenn Becks’ recent controversial comments against “social justice Christians” and why Christians should work toward social justice.
Oregon Governor Signs Bill Repealing Ban on Teachers’ Religious Dress
SALEM, OREGON – On April 1, 2010, Governor Ted Kulongoski signed a bill (HB 3686) that will repeal Oregon’s 87-year-old ban on teachers wearing religious dress.
Maryland State Legislature considers a Workplace Religious Freedom Act (HB 381)
ANNAPOLIS – The Maryland State Legislature is presently considering a state-level Workplace Religious Freedom Act” (HB 381). The bill, currently working its way through the House where it was heard on February 10, 2010, addresses employee requests for observance of holy days. Modeled on the Maryland Flexible Leave Act, the Maryland Workplace Religious Freedom Act would require…
Should Europe recognize Sunday as the official day of rest? (BBC Video)
Dr. Michael Schluter, founder of Keep Sunday Special, debates business entrepreneurs and representatives of other faith groups on the issue of whether Europe should adopt Sunday as a uniform day of rest. Part I Part II Related stories: ANALYSIS: European Sunday Weekly Rest Day Legislation Remains Unlawful “This matter deserves a full debate engaging all…
NJ county’s Sunday buying ban may be checking out (AP)
Thanks to RLTV reader Doug Beasley for finding this story. EXCERPT: The Sunday shopping ban in New Jersey’s largest county – among the nation’s last remaining blue laws – may be lifted to satisfy the state’s hunger for more sales tax revenue. The budget proposed last week by new Republican Gov. Chris Christie assumes $65 million in new…
9th Circuit Upholds the Term ‘God’ in Pledge and on Currency
Although this was a lawsuit brought by an atheist, had he won, the result might have actually been more protective of the honor of God. After these rulings stripping the name of God of any religious meaning, those who have so long clamored for God’s name to be mentioned as a statement of this nation’s religious faith might want to re-think their position.
9th Circuit Holds ‘Ministerial Exception’ Bars Seminarian Employment Case
EXCERPT: This “ministerial exception” helps to preserve the wall between church and state from even the mundane government intrusion presented here. In this case, plaintiff Cesar Rosas seeks pay for the overtime hours he worked as a seminarian in a Catholic church in Washington. The district court correctly determined that the ministerial exception bars Rosas’s claim and dismissed the case on the pleadings.
Washington State Bill to Unionize Child Care Centers Dies in Committee
Washington State Bill to Unionize Child Care Centers Dies in Committee We have good news from the State of Washington. You may have read our last newsletter about the bill that labor unions were trying to pass that would unionize private child care centers, and including faith-based preschools, and categorize their workers as government employees…