Religion & Law

Kyrgyzstan suppresses minority religious groups

Posted on August 25, 2009
Baptist Press: "Christians in the central Asian country of Kyrgyzstan have been told not to meet for worship without registration, but government officials are making it nearly impossible for churches to receive approval."

AZ Townhall: McCain booed for suggesting President respects the Constitution

Posted on August 25, 2009
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Archbishop calls for end to anti-Christian violence in India

Posted on August 25, 2009
CNA: "The archbishop?s comments came on the first anniversary of the attacks carried out against Christians by Hindu extremists in the state of Orissa, leaving 70 people dead and hundreds of Christian homes destroyed."

Belarus: Authorities prepare again to expel New Life church from its own building

Posted on August 25, 2009
Forum 18: "Members of the New Life Full Gospel congregation in the capital Minsk refused to accept the latest official demands to give up the place of worship they bought back in 2002, the church's lawyer Sergei Lukanin told Forum 18 News Service. Court executors delivered an order to vacate the building by 20 August, but church members have held a series of prayer meetings to defend their building...

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UK couples travel to USA for embryo sex selection

Posted on August 25, 2009
"British couples are travelling to America to enable them to select the sex of their children . . . The UK bans the use of PGD to test for sex, although it is permitted to detect genetic diseases . . . "

ACLJ: Preliminary Injunction Granted in IL Conscience Case ? Pharmacists Score a Win in Long Battle for Their Rights

Posted on August 25, 2009
ACLJ: "On Friday, the circuit court sitting in Springfield, Ill. issued a preliminary injunction in the case of two pharmacy owners, Luke VanderBleek and Glenn Kosirog. Both men have been fighting to protect their conscience rights. The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), focusing on constitutional law, is representing the pharmacists in the case of Morr-Fitz, Inc...

Court Orders Fed to Disclose Emergency Bank Loans

Posted on August 25, 2009
Bloomberg: "The Federal Reserve must for the first time identify the companies in its emergency lending programs after losing a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit."

Illinois Appellate Court rules that automatically generated internet ?cache? can establish ?control? of child porn

Posted on August 25, 2009
At issue on appeal is whether images automatically downloaded from the internet and stored in the 'temporary internet files' folder of a computer?s hard drive can contribute to a conviction for 'voluntary' possession of child pornography . . .

Denmark: ?Proposal would allow homosexual couples to use marriage language?

Posted on August 25, 2009
The Copenhagen Post: "A majority of Copenhagen City Councillors are backing a proposal to allow homosexual couples to be declared 'married' when they enter civil unions at City Hall. Culture and Leisure Deputy Mayor Pia Allerslev, the proposal?s sponsor, said the change was a matter of language...

Lambda Legal calls for end to HIV travel ban

Posted on August 25, 2009
Pink News: "Lambda Legal, a group that pursues litigation in support of LGBT rights, has called on the US government to end a ban on people living with HIV from travelling to or taking up residence in the country."

Wash. bans Capitol holiday displays, tree to stay

Posted on August 25, 2009
KNDO: "The Christmas tree can stay, but no more Nativity scene. That's the word from Washington's Capitol, where protests erupted last winter over competing private holiday displays."

Texas: Prayer During NRH Council Meetings Drawing Flak

Posted on August 25, 2009
CBS11TV.com: "A North Texas city's prayer practices are being challenged. The Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation sent a four-page letter to the mayor of North Richland Hills demanding the council stop using Christian prayers during meetings...

Well-Known Convert Struggles to Stay Alive in Egypt

Posted on August 24, 2009
Christian Post: "These days, one of Egypt?s most well-known converts to Christianity is living a mobile lifestyle, but not by choice. Maher El Gohary, the second Egyptian to legally request to change his religious status, and his 15-year-old daughter, Dina, are living like ?fugitives,? the Los Angeles Times reported on Sunday...

CT: Preacher wins settlement in suit against city

Posted on August 24, 2009
New Haven Register: "A Christian preacher has won a settlement from the city that will allow him to share his message on city streets without interference from police . . . 'Christians shouldn?t be penalized for expressing their beliefs,' said Jonathan Scruggs of the Alliance Defense Fund in a statement...

NJ activists ready for battle over same-sex ?marriage?

Posted on August 24, 2009
Boston.com (AP): "Both sides -- those who say they want to 'protect marriage' as it is, and those who call for 'marriage equality' -- are recruiting and mobilizing volunteers to pressure lawmakers. A bill that would allow gay marriage is expected to be debated in Trenton during the lame-duck period between the Nov...

Australia: More Queensland hospitals drop abortion, seeking decriminalization

Posted on August 24, 2009
The Australian: "The revolt by Queensland's doctors widened yesterday, as another two public hospitals reportedly withdrew medical abortion services and a pregnant woman was sent to Sydney for treatment scrapped by the state's biggest hospital. This was despite Premier Anna Bligh's bid to appease doctors who want Queensland to decriminalise abortion with a partial rewrite of the existing law...

Court: Delaware sports betting would violate ban

Posted on August 24, 2009
AP: "A federal appeals court ruled Monday that Delaware's plan to offer sports betting would violate a 1992 federal ban on sports wagering."

Freedom of conscience for pro-life taxpayers

Posted on August 24, 2009
The American Spectator: "The liberal officials and activists comprising the Far Left make perfectly clear that their highest social priority is abortion. More than same-sex marriage or gun control, abortion is their defining social issue. So legislation for Obamacare written exclusively by liberal Democrats will protect their agenda...

Colorado: ?Press Conference: Personhood Amendment Launches State?s First All-Volunteer Initiative?

Posted on August 24, 2009
Christian Newswire: "Tomorrow's press conference will launch the 2010 Personhood Amendment petition drive with a request to re-activate a thousand volunteer petitioners from 2008."

Middle Eastern Expert: Yale U. Press? censorship influenced by Saudi money

Posted on August 24, 2009
"There's a strong prima facie case for this, and it revolves around Yale's courting of Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal."

Missouri budget keeps abortion alternatives despite Health Dept.

Posted on August 24, 2009
LifeNews: "Over suggestions from the Missouri Health Department, the new state budget includes the funding for an abortion alternatives program . . . In response to a request from pro-abortion Gov. Jay Nixon to identify cuts in the state budget given the current fiscal crisis in Missouri, officials with the state health department proposed slashing the program's funding in June...

Maine: City, Muslims reach mosque agreement

Posted on August 24, 2009
WCSH6: "The city of Portland and a group of Afghan Muslims have come to an agreement that will allow them to use a building on Washington Avenue as a mosque. The Maine Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit on behalf of Portland Masjid and Islamic Center, saying the city's zoning ordinances violate the group's right to religious freedom...

Denmark: 15 year old boy charged for anti-Islamic posters

Posted on August 24, 2009
Islam in Europe: "A 15 year old boy from Rønne will appear in court next week. He's charged with trying to distribute racist posters. The Bornholm court says that the 15 year old is charged with having produced posters and fliers at home with the titles: 'Denmark will be a Muslim country?,' 'Denmark wake up...

Venezuelans protest over schools law

Posted on August 24, 2009
EuroNews: "The law orders schools to base curricula on the 'Bolivarian Doctrine' ? a reference to ideals espoused by 19th century independence hero Simon Bolivar, such as national self-determination and Latin American unity."

Up to 200,000 abortions annually in Serbia

Posted on August 24, 2009
Balkan Insight: "Health officials report that between 150,000-200,000 abortions are carried out every year in Serbia, news-site Mondo reported Monday."

Court decisions and trends in support of same-sex ?marriage?

Posted on August 24, 2009
Polling Report: "If current trends continue, a majority of Americans will support same-sex marriage by the year 2014. While majority support does not always lead to movement in policy, the tone of the national debate would likely change significantly if support for gay marriage can no longer be written off as a minority viewpoint...

Salt Lake City mayor proposes LGBT nondiscrimination bill

Posted on August 24, 2009
Gay & Lesbian Issues Examiner: "On Top Magazine is reporting that Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker has been circulating a proposal for a new city ordinance that includes protections for sexual orientation and gender identity and expression. The public discussion draft, titled 'Overview of Possible Salt Lake City Non-Discrimination Ordinance,' is based on a July 2009 report by the Salt Lake City Human Rights Commission that 'provides further factual confirmation of the harms caused by discriminatory practices...

Guam: 26% support same-sex ?marriage?

Posted on August 24, 2009
Pacific Daily News: "Twenty-six percent of those surveyed said they were in favor of allowing same-sex couples to marry; while 27 percent favored civil unions or domestic partnerships -- but not marriage."

Stimulus could spur more virtual charter schools

Posted on August 24, 2009
eSchool News: "As states compete for more than $4 billion in federal 'Race to the Top' stimulus grants, Education Secretary Arne Duncan has made it clear that states willing to embrace charter schools and other favored innovations will get preference...

Federal judge: Women in SD must be told unborn child is a human being

Posted on August 24, 2009
LifeSiteNews: "A Federal Court has upheld the constitutionality of a South Dakota law requiring doctors to inform patients that abortion kills a human being . . . In a statement, ADF Senior Legal Counsel Steven H. Aden commented, 'We find it incredible, however, for the court to determine that the law cannot acknowledge that a 'pregnant woman has an existing relationship with that unborn human being' because some human beings are somehow not persons...

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