Religion & Law

More Political Analysts Predict Pro-Life Gains in Congress in 2010 Elections

Posted on August 31, 2009
LifeNews: "Advancing a pro-abortion health care bill that could lead to rationing medical care and having a pro-abortion president who is making taxpayers fund abortions appears to come at a cost for the abortion advocates who lead Congress. More political analysts are predicting pro-life gains after the 2010 elections...

Names, addresses of Referendum 71 donors not exempt from public disclosure

Posted on August 28, 2009
"The names and addresses of donors to Referendum 71 will not be exempt from public disclosure, the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission decided today."

The rise of the ?asexual movement??

Posted on August 28, 2009
San Francisco Chronicle:Asexuals leave the closet, find community "The movement is a testament to how vital sexual identity is to self-worth. But the public emergence of asexuals also raises questions for sexuality researchers - mysteries involving the fluidity of sexual identity and the link between romance, which many asexuals enjoy, and sexual attraction ...

CT: Man appeals permit for Bridgeport strip club

Posted on August 28, 2009
The Connecticut Post: "The neighbor of a Main Street bar featuring exotic dancers is appealing the city zoning officer's decision to issue a cafe permit to the establishment."

To access this complete feed in the blog feed reader login or register for free.

?Science, Sociology, and the Potential of a Male Pill?

Posted on August 28, 2009
Science Progress: "Researchers at Oxford University recently discovered that a genetic defect with the PLC zeta protein in sperm leads to infertility in men because proper functioning of this protein is needed to allow fertilization. This discovery is not only important to men suffering from this type of infertility; it also presents the possibility that researchers could develop a male contraceptive that would inactivate the PLC zeta protein, and that would probably have fewer unpalatable side effects than other male contraceptives under research...

1st Circuit: Muslim inmates have a right of access to televised prayer services

Posted on August 28, 2009
Law.com: "The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit has upheld a lower court ruling requiring Massachusetts prison officials to allow two Muslim inmates access to televised prayer services. The court's Aug. 24 ruling expanded the circuit's sparse case law on the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA), a federal law passed in 2000 to strengthen the right of religious expression for prisoners and in land-use planning...

Bangladesh: Muslims threaten Catholic women of Dewtola village

Posted on August 28, 2009
Asia News: "Catholic women of the village of Dewtola can no longer go to mass because of continual threats from local Muslims."

WA: ?Gay-rights? group sues to block R-71; state rules supporters must disclose donors

Posted on August 28, 2009
"[Washington Families Standing Together] has sued the secretary of state in an attempt to keep Referendum 71 from qualifying for the November ballot . . . "

W. Va.: Mineral tightens strip club rules

Posted on August 28, 2009
Cumberland Times-News: "After a several-year struggle to have some control over adult entertainment, commissioners approved an ordinance Tuesday that restricts adult businesses from locating within 2,500 feet of a school, church or residential area."

Uruguay nears same-sex adoption law

Posted on August 28, 2009
CNN International: "The bill, approved Thursday by a vote of 40-13, must pass the Senate. Because the ruling Frente Amplio party holds a majority, the bill's passage is almost assured in the Senate, which must vote before September 15."

Erik Stanley and Bishop Rick Painter on KPXQ Radio: Silencing the Church Bells

Posted on August 28, 2009
ADF attorney Erik Stanley and Anglican Bishop Rick Painter of the Cathedral of Christ the King Church in Phoenix, Arizona appeared on KPXQ Radio to discuss efforts to silence the Church Bells. The MP3 runs just over 40 minutes.

Mike Johnson on the Michael Medved Show: What about the rights of those who oppose marriage redefinition?

Posted on August 28, 2009
ADF attorney Mike Johnson appeared on the Michael Medved Show to discuss the rights of those who oppose marriage redefinition. The MP3 runs just over 33 minutes.

Study: Aging, Religion, and Health

Posted on August 28, 2009
Angus Deaton, Princeton University: "In this paper, I use data from the Gallup World Poll to study the within and between country relationships between religiosity, age, and gender, as well as the effects of religiosity on a range of health measures and health-related behaviors ...

Iowa: NOM may ?need to disclose donors, state warns?

Posted on August 28, 2009
Des Moines Register: "[The National Organization for Marriage] will likely need to form its own Political Action Committee and disclose its donors if it continues its Iowa activities, a state official warned today."

David French: Texas A&M gets it right

Posted on August 28, 2009
David French writing at National Review Online Phi Beta Cons: "This week, Texas A&M agreed to recognize Freshman Leaders in Christ (FLiC) for the upcoming school year. University officials had officially denied recognition because the group limited its membership to freshman Christians...

What about Arlington? Presidents of ADF and Liberty Legal Institute speak to the American Legion

Posted on August 28, 2009
"Without God there could be no American form of government nor an American way of life. Recognition of the Supreme Being is the first the most basic expression of Americanism." Dwight D. Eisenhower

Conservatism reigns in Croatia

Posted on August 28, 2009
OneNewsNow: "Abstinence education is celebrating a legal victory in Croatia . . . 'So the potential of this case was to completely liberalize sexual education throughout Europe,' [Roger Kiska] explains."

Homeschooler ordered to school

Posted on August 28, 2009
WORLDmag.com: "A New Hampshire court has ordered a mother to cease homeschooling her 10-year-old daughter and put her into a public school . . . Alliance Defense Fund-allied attorney John Anthony Simmons said the ruling is troubling because the court based its decision on Amanda?s faith rather than the quality of her education: 'Every time you have a court order that uses a wrong standard or misapplies constitutional law, everyone?s rights are eventually at stake...

Court orders Christian child into government education

Posted on August 28, 2009
WorldNetDaily: "A 10-year-old homeschool girl . . . has been told by a New Hampshire court official to attend a government school because she was too 'vigorous' in defense of her Christian faith . . . The recommendation was approved by Judge Lucinda V...

N.H. court orders home-schooled girl into public school

Posted on August 28, 2009
CitizenLink: "The Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) has asked a New Hampshire court to reconsider its decision to order a 10-year-old home-schooled girl into public school. 'Parents have a fundamental right to make educational choices for their children,' said ADF-allied attorney John Anthony Simmons...

Persecuted German home school family facing September hearing

Posted on August 28, 2009
LifeSiteNews: "Human rights advocates are calling the case of a German homeschooling family 'a critical human rights battle.' On September 22nd, the Schmidt family of southern Bavaria in Germany will face a hearing in which government officials will decide if they may keep custody of one of their sons...

N.J. Catholic bishops begin targeted campaign against marriage redefinition

Posted on August 28, 2009
NJ.com: "Catholic bishops in New Jersey have begun a campaign against same-sex marriage in anticipation of a possible vote on the issue by state legislators sometime after the November election. The bishops directed Catholic priests throughout the state to distribute in parish bulletins last Sunday a 2,300-word letter opposing same-sex marriage...

Liberty Counsel Petitions Supreme Court to Hear Graduation Free Speech Case

Posted on August 28, 2009
Liberty Counsel: ". . . has filed a Petition for Certiorari at the United States Supreme Court on behalf of Erica Corder, a high school graduate with a 4.0 GPA who was denied her diploma until she issued a publically disseminated, coerced, written apology for presenting a thirty-second valedictory speech that included a religious reference...

Bill would give president emergency control of Internet

Posted on August 28, 2009
CNET: "Internet companies and civil liberties groups were alarmed this spring when a U.S. Senate bill proposed handing the White House the power to disconnect private-sector computers from the Internet. They're not much happier about a revised version that aides to Sen...

Washington Post sounds the warning alarm, NOM Head is a formidable opponent

Posted on August 28, 2009
"Avoid the phrase 'ban gay marriage,' the talking points suggest, adding that opponents 'know it causes us to lose about ten percentage points in polls.'"

Texas A&M: Christian club may remain Christian

Posted on August 28, 2009
fter receiving a letter from the Alliance Defense Fund Center for Academic Freedom written on behalf of a Christian student club, Texas A&M officials agreed Thursday to continue recognizing the group as an official university student organization without forcing it to abandon its core beliefs and purpose.

Marriage as a Message: Same-Sex Couples and the Rhetoric of Accidental Procreation

Posted on August 28, 2009
Kerry Abrams and Peter Brooks, Marriage as a Message: Same-Sex Couples and the Rhetoric of Accidental Procreation (June 9, 2009). Yale Journal of Law and the Humanities, Vol. 21, No. 1, 2009. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1416770 "This article examines the accidental procreation argument through the lenses of anthropological theory, history, literature, and constitutional law...

Iowa School District Plans to Revise Religious Liberty Policy

Posted on August 28, 2009
Christian Post: "School officials in Spencer, Iowa, are putting the brakes on a proposed 'religious liberty' policy that would allow students to critique Darwinism and study the Bible, among other things. Protests and criticism from nonreligious groups and advocates have led officials to reconsider implementing the policy...

Thomas More Society of Chicago Files Brief for New York State Catholic Conference in Defense of Traditional Marriage

Posted on August 28, 2009
Christian Newswire: "This week the New York Court of Appeals, the state's highest court, ordered that the Chicago-based Thomas More Society could file an amicus curiae brief on behalf of the New York State Catholic Conference to defend traditional marriage in the case of Kenneth Lewis v...

Marriage could be on Cal. ballot in 2010: ?Big Meeting? this weekend

Posted on August 28, 2009
San Francisco Chronicle: "You've heard that Equality California and other same-sex marriage groups suggest waiting until 2012 to ask California voters to approve same sex marriage. But don't sleep on seeing a ballot measure in 2010 just yet. As we speak, the 700,000-member Courage Campaign is pumping more than $200,000 into researching and focus-grouping possible ballot language around California ...

Bloggers, promote your law blog by nominating your blog for inclusion in USLaw.com's Law Blog Directory and RSS Reader. Benefits described.