EXCERPT: The Pakistani government should immediately drop blasphemy charges against a 17-year-old student and ensure his safe release from detention, Human Rights Watch said today. The authorities arrested Muhammad Samiullah on January 28, 2011, and charged him under Pakistan’s “blasphemy law,” article 295-C of the criminal code, for allegedly including derogatory remarks about the Prophet…
Religious Undertones in Egyptian Protests? – (Liberty Magazine Round Table)
Over the past decade, Egyptian Copts have fallen victim to increasing discrimination and persecution, most recently with the January 1 suicide church bombing that killed at least 21 people and injured dozens more. Do the current anti-government demonstrations in Cairo have religious undertones, and what could this mean for the Egyptian Christian minority? Read some…
Giles County, VA. To Rehang 10C Plaques in Public Schools
WSLS 10 News, Roanoke, Virginia, 1-20-2011 Giles County School Board votes unanimously to reinstall 10 Commandments plaques in all public schools.
The Health-Religion Connection by Joshua Crouch
The struggle between faith-healing and public health services may not be a mainstream topic, yet it continues to rage throughout our nation. Oregon has recently had a string of adolescent deaths tied to extreme Christian conservatism. The Christian Science Church has pushed law makers to allow parents to exempt their children from all medical treatment,…
Article18: Wales – Special Interview with the President of the Seventh-day Adventist Mission in Wales
By Martin Surridge – In the cold, northern reaches of Western Europe there is a small country that doesn’t often make international headlines, but might actually be a useful barometer for understanding the continent’s spiritual diversity and religious future. No, not France, Germany, or even England, but rather the western edge of Celtic Britain, Wales. …
Judge upholds ban on guns in places of worship (Atlanta-Journal Constitution)
EXCERPT: A federal judge has upheld the Georgia law banning weapons in churches, mosques and synagogues, saying gun rights advocates had not shown that carrying a firearm is necessary to practicing any religion. U.S. District Judge Ashley Royal late Monday dismissed a lawsuit filed by the gun rights organization GeorgiaCarry.org and the minister at the…
Article18: Pakistan — Fallout from Governor’s Assassination Disrupts Efforts to Eliminate Discriminatory Blasphemy Laws
By Martin Surridge – Usually it would be rare for massive crowds to gather and protest against a possible increase in religious liberty. But in Pakistan? Perhaps not that surprising. Welcome back to Article18-RLTV’s first weekly blog specifically dedicated to religious liberty issues in other countries around the world. Each week, we will be focusing…
Pope says European sex education an ‘attack’ on religious freedom (AFP)
EXCERPT: Sex and civic education in schools in Europe is an “attack” on religious freedom, Pope Benedict XVI said on Monday, following a Vatican row with Spain over a new course promoting liberal values. “I cannot remain silent about another attack on the religious freedom of families in certain European countries which mandate obligatory participation…
Citing persecutions abroad, Obama declares ‘Religious Freedom Day’ (Examiner)
EXCERPT: President Obama yesterday carried out what has become an annual tradition of declaring January 16 “Religious Freedom Day.” Citing Virginia’s 1786 “Statute for Religious Freedom,” in which Tomas Jefferson wrote that “all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinion in matters of religion,” the president said that although the…
Article18: Sudan — Referendum Could Split Nation in Two; Potentially Good News for Millions of Sudanese Christians and Muslims
By Martin Surridge – Quietly making news this week, nestled between the East Coast snow storms and the Arizona shooting, is an event which, if all unfolds as expected, will make history in a corner of the world that has so often been tragically forgotten. Welcome back to Article18–RLTV’s first weekly blog specifically dedicated to…