Religion & Law

Indiana House Votes Down Marriage Amendment

Posted on March 01, 2010
Citizen Link: "Even though the votes are there in both chambers of the Indiana Legislature, House Speaker Pat Bauer has kept the amendment from getting a vote."

George Will: A Cure for Character

Posted on March 01, 2010
George Will writes at Townhall: "It is scientifically sensible to say that all behavior is in some sense caused. But a society that thinks scientific determinism renders personal responsibility a chimera must consider it absurd not only to condemn depravity but also to praise nobility...

?DC gay marriage opponents appeal to high court?

Posted on March 01, 2010
AP: "Court papers filed Monday with Chief Justice John Roberts argue that Washington residents should be able to vote on the matter."

Parents say doctors hastened death for dying kids

Posted on March 01, 2010
AP: "It's a situation too agonizing to contemplate - a child dying and in pain. Now a small but provocative study suggests that doctors may be giving fatal morphine doses to a few children dying of cancer, to end their suffering at their parents' request...

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3 abortion doctors face legal problems

Posted on March 01, 2010
Baptist Press: bortion doctors and their clinics continue to be the targets of legal investigations. The following accounts were reported by major newspapers in recent days . . .

ABC: ?Nicaragua?s Anti-Abortion Policy Endangers Women, Criminalizes Doctors, Experts Say?

Posted on March 01, 2010
ABC: "By criminalizing all abortion procedures, including therapeutic abortions that aim to protect the life and health of the mother, Nicaragua's ban restricts a woman's access to a range of medical treatments, such as cardiac surgery, radiation and pain-killing medications ...

Will the U.S. appeal asylum grant for German homeschoolers?

Posted on March 01, 2010
"The U.S. government will come under political pressure to appeal the Romeike case so as not to offend a close ally . . . "

?Colorado Springs Police To Be Trained In Transgender Sensitivity?

Posted on March 01, 2010
Huffington Post: "All Colorado Springs police officers are undergoing training on how the department expects them to behave when questioning, searching or detaining transgender individuals."

Federal Judge: Teacher Has Constitutional Right to Display Patriotic Banners that Mention ?God? in Classroom

Posted on March 01, 2010
Reality Check: "California Federal District Court Judge Roger T. Benitez ruled late this past Friday that the Poway Unified School District in San Diego, CA, violated math teacher Bradley Johnson?s constitutional rights when it ordered him to remove two patriotic banners from the walls of his classroom because they ?over-emphasized? God...

Delaware To Speak With Abortion Doctor

Posted on March 01, 2010
MyFoxPhilly.com: "The legal and licensing problems for an abortion doctor spread into Delaware for Dr. Kermit Gosnell . . . Gosnell is licensed in Delaware and until last week practiced part time at a women?s clinic in Wilmington. Officials there now say the doctor no longer works there because his license to practice medicine had been suspended in Pennsylvania ...

OH: Church asks Supreme Court for OK to sponsor charter school

Posted on March 01, 2010
The Columbus Dispatch: "Brookwood Presbyterian Church runs an educational program for 64 students with autism and other special needs, but as a church, it is disqualified from sponsoring charter schools, the Ohio Department of Education says . . . The case is fraught with church-state implications...

First openly homosexual California Assembly leader sworn in

Posted on March 01, 2010
CNSNews: "The first openly gay lawmaker to lead either house of the California Legislature has been sworn in as speaker of the state Assembly."

South Korea clamps down on abortion to boost birthrate

Posted on March 01, 2010
Yahoo (AFP): "South Korea announced a crackdown on abortionists as part of a drive to boost its low birthrate, a pressing issue in the rapidly ageing society."

MS: Maternity home would be abortion alternative

Posted on March 01, 2010
Desoto Times Tribune: "A Horn Lake couple has embarked on a mission to give expectant moms an alternative to abortion. Keri and Shawn Carey began seeking public support last month for a maternity home they plan to locate on 65 acres in rural DeSoto County...

KS: House mulling ?covenant marriage? law

Posted on March 01, 2010
The Hutchinson News: "Legislation that would make it harder for some people to get a divorce in Kansas is making its way through the Statehouse. Proponents of 'covenant marriage' say the voluntary agreement would require couples to make a higher commitment to marriage and to understand that commitment before going into a marriage...

Virginia: Committee advances governor?s charter school bill

Posted on March 01, 2010
Richmond Times Dispatch: "The committee voted 17-5 for the legislation. Under a compromise announced last week, local school boards would continue to have final say on charter applications. But the state Board of Education would review an application and make a recommendation to the local board...

Maine HRC meeting today to discuss school accommodations for ?transgenders?

Posted on March 01, 2010
WorldNetDaily: "Guidelines have been proposed that would specify what commission officials believe all schools must do to make accommodations for any biological boy who asserts he's female, or biological girl who asserts she's male."

Planned Parenthood-backed bill would allow Medicaid abortions in Illinois

Posted on March 01, 2010
The State Journal-Register: "A bill backed by Planned Parenthood in the Illinois General Assembly would remove restrictions on when low-income women could receive abortions paid for by the state's Medicaid program. House Bill 6205, sponsored by House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie, D-Chicago, is expected to be considered by a House committee later this month...

Feminists discuss strategy to legalize abortion in Latin America

Posted on March 01, 2010
CNA: "Pro-abortion leaders gathered at the Latin American Forum of Strategies for the Legalization of Abortion last week in Bogota, Colombia where they discussed their intention to take advantage of ambiguous international laws to pressure governments in the region to legalize the procedure...

ADF seeks to appeal conviction of NY Christian arrested while praying

Posted on March 01, 2010
"Alliance Defense Fund attorneys have submitted an application to appeal the state?s conviction of a Christian arrested while praying in an Elmira public park during a 2007 ?gay pride? event."

IL: Planned Parenthood Springfield to begin offering ?medication abortions?

Posted on March 01, 2010
The State Journal-Register: "With newly installed outdoor secu­rity cameras and buzz-in entry sys­tem, Planned Parenthood Springfield plans to begin offering elective abor­tions this month through the use of drugs that let women complete the procedure at home...

How does USCIS? appeals body handle disputes about religious visas?

Posted on March 01, 2010
David North writing at the Center for Immigration Studies: "What happens when an obscure USCIS appellate body handles disputes about visas for religious workers? In my review of the 62 decisions made in 2009 made by the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) the answer appears to be ? carefully and narrowly...

Portugal?s ?gay marriage? bill receives final approval

Posted on March 01, 2010
OnTopMag("gay advocacy website"): "The government's Committee for Constitutional Affairs unanimously agreed on the bill's final language. The measure now heads to the desk of President Anibal Cavaco Silva. Cavaco Silva is a Roman Catholic and a member of the PSD party, groups which oppose the legalization of gay marriage, and he has publicly stated his opposition to gay marriage...

Cyprus: Gov?t to look at redefining marriage

Posted on March 01, 2010
Cyprus Mail: "The government will soon examine the issue of making same-sex marriages legal in Cyprus, Interior Ministry Permanent Secretary Lazaros Savvides has told the Sunday Mail."

Russian Constitutional Court: ECHR is binding in Russia

Posted on March 01, 2010
The Moscow Times: "The Constitutional Court on Friday ordered the state to obey decisions by the Strasbourg Court of Human Rights and demanded further legislative action to ensure their smooth implementation. 'Decisions by the European Court of Human Rights are binding for Russia,' the court said in a ruling published on its web site...

Nevada high court to expedite anti-abortion initiative?s appeal

Posted on March 01, 2010
Leagle: "The Nevada Supreme Court has agreed to expedite an appeal from a group seeking to override state abortion statutes . . . The Supreme Court granted the request on Thursday and ordered initiative backers and its opponents to file all briefs by April 2...

Iraqi Christians Protest Killings

Posted on March 01, 2010
"Hundreds of Iraqi Christians on Sunday protested against the recent flare up of violence against them in northern Iraq . . . he string of murders, which sends the message to Christians that they can be killed at anytime and anywhere . . . "

President Obama Nominates Lesbian Woman for U.S. Attorney Post

Posted on March 01, 2010
HRC Back Story Blog: "On February 24, President Obama nominated Laura E. Duffy to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California . . . "

?Victory for Freedom for Ministries and Tax Exempt Organizations?

Posted on March 01, 2010
Christian Newswire: "Last year [Tarrant County Appraisal District] TAD denied a request from Kenneth Copeland Ministries for religious exemption from certain property taxes mainly related to aircraft belonging to KCM. Part of the requirement for this exemption was a request for the names, positions and salaries of each of the ministry's employees (nearly 600 persons) even though the director of the Appraisal District stated publicly that this requirement was not law and that he and his staff never read the documentation ...

?Abortion surcharge?

Posted on March 01, 2010
California Catholic Daily: "Obama, Pelosi insist no federal funding for abortion in pending healthcare bill; pro-life groups disagree."

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