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Religion & Law

Blog From The Capital

Blog from the Capital is the weblog of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, a Baptist church-state separation advocacy group in D.C. for the last 70 years.

Post Frequency: 8.8/day

Last Entry: March 30, 2009 at 16:22:09

"Under God" Catalyst Dies

Posted on November 30, 2008
Most Americans are surprised to learn that the Pledge of Allegiance did not originally contain the phrase "under God". Like the phrase "In God We Trust" on currency, it was added much later, signed into law by President Eisenhower in...

Churches Campaigning for Legislative Initiatives

Posted on November 28, 2008
The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the controversy surrounding California's Proposition 8 has led to accusations that the Mormon Church was improperly involved, violating their the church's tax-exempt status. But the truth is that IRS' strict prohibitions against political activity...

Happy Thanksgiving!

Posted on November 27, 2008
Be back tomorrow!...

6th Circuit Says School Outsourcing Case May Continue

Posted on November 26, 2008
Overturning a lower court's ruling that plaintiffs did not have taxpayer standing to bring an Establishment Clause suit, the 6th Circuit determined otherwise, 2-1. In addition, they found that there are issues of fact to be considered, thus no summary...

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Georgia Pastors Re-Organizing for Senate Runoff With Questionable "Briefing"

Posted on November 25, 2008
AU's Sandhya Bathija posts about today's scheduled ?Pastors? Policy Briefing Luncheon? in Atlanta, a week before the Senate runoff election, and wonders if incumbent candidate Saxby Chambliss will be there, essentially campaigning. The event tomorrow is headlined ?Rediscovering God in...

Chuck Norris Defeats the Liberal Media and Barack Obama, Saves Thanksgiving

Posted on November 25, 2008
As I'm sure you've said on several occasions: Thank God for Chuck Norris. If he didn't exist, we would have to invent him. Here he is in a Townhall column today, taking on his nemesis, the liberal media:This past week,...

Obama Appointees Show Religious Liberty Experience

Posted on November 25, 2008
Via Religion Clause, the Jewish Orthodox Union notes the prior religious liberty experience of 2 White House appointees of President-elect Obama in a press release: As Mr. Obama noted in introducing her, Ms. Barnes worked on many critical issues when...

Summum: The View From Texas

Posted on November 24, 2008
An opinion piece in the Ft. Worth-Telegram looks at the Summum argument. (via How Appealing) [I]f the city of Pleasant Grove endorses the Ten Commandments, how does that not amount to promotion of one religion over others, a violation of...

Faith-Healing Exemptions

Posted on November 24, 2008
An AP story from the weekend looks at the slow-going efforts to repeal faith-healing exemptions to requirements that parents get medical treatment for their children. Faith healing has deep roots in American history, and yet it may seem surprising that...

Controversial MN Pastor May Signal Coming Disputes

Posted on November 24, 2008
A Star Tribune editorial highlights the growing legal battle between the IRS and Minnesota pastor Mac Hammond and his Living Word church. Living Word just won a challenge to the government's demand for financial documents. The Minneapolis paper warns: At...

2008 Religion Storylines Emphasize Rumor, Controversy

Posted on November 23, 2008
Late last week, the Pew Forum released a report critiquing the media's coverage of religion in this year's presidential campaign. Far more of the religion storylines involved Obama, and most of these involved controversy or had an unfavorable cast. In...

Indiana House Restarts Prayers Despite Court Ruling

Posted on November 21, 2008
The Indianapolis Star reports that the leaders of the Indiana State House have reinstituted an opening prayer policy, now that a lawsuit was discarded for lack of standing; this, after a lower court determined that their policy allowing sectarian prayer...

Colorado Jury Gives Something to Both Sides in RLUIPA Dispute

Posted on November 21, 2008
I updated my post from earlier in the week to reflect the outcome of jury deliberations in the Colorado RLUIPA case involving a church's desire to expand in size against the wishes of Boulder County. Today's LATimes also offers perspective...

Follow the Money

Posted on November 20, 2008
Texas' Christian Life Commission counsel Stephen Reeves, formerly of the Baptist Joint Committee, helped deliver an important message at TCU yesterday (my emphasis): Reeves, who is an adviser to the Baptist General Convention of Texas, said even though the increasing...

Texas Science Curriculum Proposal Draws Fire [UPDATED]

Posted on November 20, 2008
The Texas Board of Education is considering changes to the science curriculum standards (you can read the second draft - in pdf form - here). They would require discussing "weaknesses" in, and "alternatives" to, evolution. A public hearing (Texas Freedom...

What's Newt Talking About?

Posted on November 19, 2008
From the Bill O' Reilly show, Friday Nov. 14 (my emph.): NEWT GINGRICH: Look, I think there is a gay and secular fascism in this country that wants to impose its will on the rest of us, is prepared to...

BJC's Brent Walker on National Days of Prayer and Thanksgiving

Posted on November 19, 2008
Baptist Joint Committee Executive Director Brent Walker shares his views on whether Presidents should officially proclaim national days of prayer, or thanksgiving to God. His new essay at the Washington Post's On Faith page ends this way: As church-state controversies...

Minnesota Pastor Wins Round One with IRS

Posted on November 19, 2008
A federal magistrate has agreed with Minneapolis pastor Mac Hammond that subpoenas requesting his church's financial records were improper. Living Word Church successfully argued that the request had not come from a "high-ranking official" as required by law...

Federal Jury to Decide Colorado RLUIPA Case

Posted on November 18, 2008
A bid by Rocky Mountain Christian Church in Boulder County, Colorado to double its size led to a 2-week jury trial that has just concluded. The LATimes reports: Boulder County officials, known for aggressively preserving open space and rural land,...

New Bush Administration Rule Riles its Own Discrimination Office, Violates its Own Deadline

Posted on November 18, 2008
In an end-of-presidency move that has drawn criticism from his own EEOC, the Bush administration has proposed a new rule (pdf) that would add broad general protection to health care personnel that object to performing or assisting with a service...

Late Summum-Supreme Court Thought

Posted on November 17, 2008
A thought after finishing up some weekend reading on the Summum argument and the First Amendment curveball the case has seemingly thrown the Court. Without question, changing times require us to revisit the law, and reconsider frameworks in light of....

A Non-Christian President...the Next Frontier?

Posted on November 17, 2008
Jim Wallis talks with the San Francisco Chronicle about religion in the 2008 election, and I don't really like the way he he starts (my emph.): I think the Obama campaign made a very deliberate effort, and it was obviously...

Kentucky Amish Convicted for Refusing Safety Emblem

Posted on November 17, 2008
Via Religion Clause, the Louisville Courier-Journal reports that a district judge rejected the religious freedom argument of 7 Amish men who claim that a public safety law requiring a bright emblem on the back of their buggies violates their beliefs....

President Bush Praises Faith and Religious Freedom at UN Interfaith Conference

Posted on November 14, 2008
At an interfaith conference at the United Nations, President Bush yesterday praised the role of faith in promoting global values and stressed the urgent need for religious freedom. Our nation was founded by people seeking haven from religious persecution...

What is the Future of Monument Speech Law?

Posted on November 14, 2008
Tony Mauro builds on his earlier analysis of the Summum argument with a more general consideration of the state of First Amendment jurisprudence when it comes to defining a forum. His perspective is in line with the way it strikes...

Faith-Based Critique

Posted on November 14, 2008
A Baptist pastor in Norfolk, VA deems President Bush's Faith-Based Initiative a failure. The Rev. Geoffrey V. Guns said since the president introduced the initiative seven years ago, a large number of those groups benefiting from the federal program are...

A Natural Reaction

Posted on November 13, 2008
The Las Vegas Sun gets it right in an editorial today on the Summum monument dispute: The dispute is a good example of the slippery slope created when government displays something that represents a particular set of religious beliefs. It...

Coverage of Summum Hearing

Posted on November 13, 2008
ScotusBlog's Lyle Deniston analyzes the argument If a case does not fit within a constitutional pigeonhole, is there no other way to define it so that a legal dispute can be decided? That was the lingering question Wednesday as the...

Secular Coalition Urges Obama to Change Military Policy Regarding Religion

Posted on November 12, 2008
On Monday, the Secular Coalition of America held a news conference to propose new military rules regarding the promotion of religion. Stars and Stripes reports: A coalition of atheists and agnostics wants the new White House to protect young military...

Summum Argument Transcript

Posted on November 12, 2008
The transcript of today's Supreme Court oral argument in the case of the Summum monument is now online. From the very beginning, the Court was concerned about the ultimate Establishment Clause problem beneath the government speech argument of Jay Sekulow...

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