Religion & Law

Group: AZ town can?t ban home religious assemblies

Posted on March 15, 2010
KSWT (AP): "The national Alliance Defense Fund says a town code that bars religious assemblies in private homes in the Arizona community of Gilbert is unconstitutional . . . The Alliance Defense Fund's Doug Napier says no neighbors complained."

Ariz. church fights ban against meeting in homes

Posted on March 15, 2010
Christian Post: "Alliance Defense Fund attorneys contend in the appeal that was filed Wednesday that banning religious meetings of any size or frequency in a home is unprecedented and unconstitutional. 'Christian church groups shouldn?t be singled out for discrimination and banned from meeting in their own homes,' said ADF Litigation Counsel Daniel Blomberg...

Lawyers: Gilbert town code unconstitutional

Posted on March 15, 2010
KPHO: "A national legal group is warning Gilbert city officials that a code barring religious assemblies in private homes is unconstitutional . . . 'No neighbors complained,' said Doug Napier, of the Alliance Defense Fund. 'They weren't making noise. They weren't causing any problems...

Arizona town bans church from in-home meetings and Bible studies

Posted on March 15, 2010
Christian Singles & Spirituality Examiner: "The pastor of the seven-member Oasis of Truth Church in Gilbert, AZ was ordered by a cease and desist letter to terminate religious meetings in his home, no matter the size or frequency, based on zoning regulations ...

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Question of the First Amendment and traffic patterns

Posted on March 15, 2010
Jew School: "'The city of Gilbert, Ariz., has ordered a group of seven adults to stop gathering for Bible studies in a private home because such meetings are forbidden by the city?s zoning codes . . . The ban, however, prompted a response from the Alliance Defense Fund, which filed an appeal with the city as the first step in its campaign to overturn a provision it describes as illegal' ...

Banished! City forbids Bible studies in homes

Posted on March 15, 2010
WorldNetDaily: "The city of Gilbert, Ariz., has ordered a group of seven adults to stop gathering for Bible studies in a private home because such meetings are forbidden by the city's zoning codes . . . 'The interpretation and enforcement of the town's code is clearly unconstitutional,' said Daniel Blomberg, a member of the litigation team for ADF...

Catholic Health Association Endorses Pro-Abortion Senate Health Care Bill

Posted on March 15, 2010
LifeNews: "The Catholic Health Association is coming under fire today for releasing a statement not only endorsing the pro-abortion Senate health care bill but issuing a misleading statement making it appear the bill does not fund abortions. "

Labor Unions Attack Democrats Who Don?t Support Pro-Abortion Health Care Bill

Posted on March 15, 2010
LifeNews: "The Service Employees International Union (SEIU), which represents nearly two million workers in over 100 occupations across the United States, is coming under fire. The labor union is pressuring Democratic lawmakers who oppose the pro-abortion health care bill...

House Democrats release bill for Budget markup Monday

Posted on March 15, 2010
Wall Street Journal: "House Democrats on Sunday night set into motion what they hope will be the final steps on healthcare reform . . . Specifically, the Budget committee released a 2,309-page effort that had been previously recommended to the Education and Labor Committee and Ways and Means Committee last year...

Michael W. McConnell: The House Health-Care Vote and the Constitution

Posted on March 15, 2010
Wall Street Journal (paid subscription only): "Democratic congressional leaders have floated a plan to enact health-care reform by a procedure dubbed 'the Slaughter solution.' . . . "

Culture clash: European art provokes Muslims

Posted on March 15, 2010
One News Now: "Behind the scenes is something bigger: a rising European unease with a rapidly growing Muslim minority, and the spreading sense that the continent has become a front in a clash of civilizations."

NJ: Lambda Legal to file same-sex ?marriage? petition with Supreme Court Thursday

Posted on March 15, 2010
NJ.com, The Auditor: "The Auditor is told Lambda Legal on Thursday will file a petition with the Supreme Court to establish the right to gay marriage. 'We?ve lived the agony of defeat,' said Steve Goldstein, head of Garden State Equality. 'Now it?s time for the thrill of victory...

Canada: Abortion advocates at University of BC censor pro-life display

Posted on March 15, 2010
LifeSiteNews: "Dozens of pro-abortion protesters at the University of British Columbia (UBC) disrupted a pro-life demonstration last Tuesday, which was being sponsored by the University's pro-life club, Lifeline."

Same-sex ?marriage? advocates forcing pro-family views out of California Therapist Association

Posted on March 15, 2010
"The disturbing result of the activists' tactics, says one anonymous CAMFT intern, is that pro-family therapists in California are becoming increasingly afraid to speak up in favor of natural marriage and the family."

Weakened ultrasound law passes WV Senate unanimously

Posted on March 15, 2010
LifeSiteNews: "A bill requiring that women be given the opportunity to view any ultrasound image of their child taken before or during an abortion passed the West Virginia Senate unanimously on Saturday. The measure passed after an amendment was added to repeal penalties against physicians violating West Virginia's Right to Know law...

TN: Some say Planned Parenthood relocation to East Knox racially motivated

Posted on March 15, 2010
Knoxville News Sentinel: "The clergy members and the Pro-Life Coalition of East Tennessee say the relocation of the clinic from a predominantly white neighborhood in West Knoxville to a predominantly black one on the east side of town is, in part, racially motivated...

Virginia AG reaffirms stance on college sexual orientation policies

Posted on March 15, 2010
Richmond Times-Dispatch: "The General Assembly has considered and defined the protected classes for purposes of nondiscrimination statutes. It has specifically defined unlawful discrimination at educational institutions. The Virginia Human Rights Act states that it is the policy of the commonwealth to 'safeguard all individuals within the Commonwealth from unlawful discrimination because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, age, marital status, or disability, in places of public accommodation, including educational institutions...

US avoids abortion debate at UN meeting

Posted on March 15, 2010
Associated Press: "A U.N. meeting to assess progress in advancing the fight for women's equality that ended Friday had a dramatically different slant than a similar session held five years ago: This time, the United States was not trying to make an anti-abortion declaration a crucial theme...

NC: Wake County Commissioners to discuss elective abortion coverage

Posted on March 15, 2010
MyNC.com: "Wake County Commissioners could vote on a measure Monday restoring elective abortion coverage to the county's health plan for employees. County Manager David Cooke removed elective abortions from the health plan last month on the advice of County Attorney Scott Warren...

FL: Atheist Group Challenges Lakeland Commission Over Prayer

Posted on March 15, 2010
TheLedger.com: "The Lakeland City Commission is being challenged on its policy of beginning its meetings with prayer, part of an effort by a state atheist organization that is targeting the practice at other city councils in the region . . . "

U.S. State Dept. Speaks Out Against Rise of Religious Persecution in Iran

Posted on March 15, 2010
Christian Post: "The U.S. Department of State said Friday that is 'increasingly concerned' about the ongoing persecution of religious minority communities in Iran . . . "

?Gilbert remains committed to religious freedom?

Posted on March 15, 2010
Mayor Lewis said, ?Our vibrancy is enhanced with our strong faith-based groups. Our partnership with our local ministers and pastors is excellent. Gilbert is considered a religious friendly area. Religious activities occur all over Town and most especially in our homes...

Cal. bill would incrementally undermine marriage

Posted on March 15, 2010
California Family Council: "For instance, Senator Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) has introduced Senate Bill 906, which continues his effort to incrementally change the definition of marriage. SB 906 would create a new class of ?civil? marriages in California, undermining the traditional definition of marriage...

Judge plans to rule later this month in Illinois? abortion parental notification case

Posted on March 15, 2010
Fox2Now.com: "A judge in Chicago expects to rule March 29 on whether to lift a temporary restraining order on a long-debated Illinois law that requires a teenage girl's parents to be told before she has an abortion."

KY: Pro-life amendments may doom 2 more bills

Posted on March 15, 2010
Courier Journal: "Two more bills ? one involving nurse practitioners and the other to create a registry of people who abuse vulnerable adults ? may be dead this legislative session because of a Republican lawmaker?s effort to attach a controversial anti-abortion measure...

Alaska verifies signatures for parental consent abortion initiative

Posted on March 15, 2010
Daily News-Miner: "Enough signatures have been gathered to put to voters an initiative that would require parental notice or consent before a minor can have an abortion."

?First GLBTQ high school opens online in Minnesota?

Posted on March 15, 2010
Minneapolis Star-Tribune: "The first online private high school for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered youths has opened for business, but so far has found limited interest."

?Keep Students Home on ?Day of Silence??

Posted on March 15, 2010
Christian Newswire: "A national coalition of organizations committed to preserving parental rights in public education, restoring academic integrity to public education, and removing partisan political protests from the classroom is urging parents to call their children out of school on the Day of Silence if their school is permitting students to refuse to speak in class ...

FL: ACLU Says Move is Just to Erode Women?s Rights

Posted on March 15, 2010
FirstCoastNews.com: "Currently if someone kills a pregnant woman, in a car crash or by injuring the mother, the person can be charged separately with killing a viable fetus. That's defined as being able to live outside the womb with standard medical procedures...

Social Security to start cashing Uncle Sam?s IOUs

Posted on March 15, 2010
AP: "This year, for the first time since the 1980s, when Congress last overhauled Social Security, the retirement program is projected to pay out more in benefits than it collects in taxes - nearly $29 billion more."

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