Religion Clause: Religion & Law

Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Religion & Law Blogs

OR PHONE (866) 635-1838 for Bankruptcy Help, (866) 635-6190 for Divorce,
(866) 635-2689 for Personal Injury or (866) 635-9402 for Criminal Defense

Find a Local Lawyer

Bankruptcy (866) 635-1838
Divorce (866) 635-6190
Personal Injury (866) 635-2689
Criminal Defense (866) 635-9402

Religion & Law

Religion Clause

Current legal, political and scholarly developments relating to free exercise of religion and separation of church and state.
By Howard M. Friedman

Post Frequency: 19.9/day

Last Entry: November 05, 2020 at 07:00:00

British Registrar's Religious Discrimination Suit Heard By Tribunal

Posted on May 21, 2008
Today's London Mail reports that in Britain, a London employment tribunal yesterday heard arguments in a religious discrimination case brought by civil marriage registrar Lillian Ladele. Ladele says that the Islington council violated her rights when it insisted that in order for her to keep her position she would be required to perform civil partnership ceremonies for same-sex couples...

Residents of Israeli Town Burn Bibles Distributed To Them By Missionaries

Posted on May 21, 2008
Israel Insider today reports that in the Israeli town of Ohr Yehuda, the battle between traditional Jews and Messianics attempting to convert town residents hit a new level of intensity on Monday. Jews in the town, at the urging of a soundtruck going down a city street, brought copies of the New Testament and other Christian texts that had been distributed to them, for burning...

Religious Discrimination Charged In Pentagon's Investigation of Spy Claims

Posted on May 21, 2008
Today's New York Sun reports on the case of Army tank engineer David Tenenbaum who says that religious discrimination was part of the reason he was targeted in an investigation that initially alleged that he was a spy for Israel. The U.S. Attorney's Office declined to prosecute Tenenbaum because the government did not have sufficient evidence to back up its charges...

Maryland Church Sues Over Utility Denial

Posted on May 21, 2008
Today's Gaithersburg (MD) Gazette reports that a Silver Spring (MD) congregation, Bethel World Outreach Ministries has filed a federal lawsuit against the Montgomery County Council charging racial and religious discrimination in its denial of Bethel's application to run utility service to a rural parcel of land in Germantown...

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

Hearings Begin In FLDS Custody Cases; Vague Service Plans Protested

Posted on May 20, 2008
The AP and the Salt Lake Tribune report on hearings that began yesterday in the custody proceedings for over 460 children taken from the FLDS ranch in Eldorado, Texas. Five judges are conducting the hearings which, it is expected, will run for three weeks...

Danish Government Will Ban Judges From Wearing Religious Garb or Symbols

Posted on May 20, 2008
Denmark's government, reacting to pressure from the anti-Muslim Danish People's Party, says it will ban Danish judges from wearing headscarves and other religious or political symbols in their courtrooms. The ban will also extend to crucifixes worn by Christians, skull caps worn by Jewish judges and turbans worn by Sikhs...

Survey Finds 16% of High School Biology Teachers Believe In Creationism

Posted on May 20, 2008
New Scientist yesterday reported that a Pennsylvania State University professor's survey of high school biology teachers reveals that 16% of them hold young earth creationist views. Prof. Michael Berkman's research found that approximately one in eight of the 939 teachers responding to the survey say they believe human beings were created by God within the last 10,000 years...

Cultural Identity Charter School Ordered To Make Two Changes In Operations

Posted on May 20, 2008
After a Minneapolis newspaper columnist charged that the Terek ibn Ziyad Academy, a cultural identity publicly-funded charter school, had breached the line between church and state (see prior posting), the Minnesota Department of Education this month conducted a review of the Inver Grove (MN) school's operations...

Canada's High Court To Hear Case On Mature Minor's Relgious Rights

Posted on May 20, 2008
Canada's Supreme Court today will hear arguments in A.C. v. Director of Child and Family Services, a case raising the question of whether mature minors have the right under Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms to refuse a blood transfusion on religious grounds...

New York Court Refuses Comity to Israeli Divorce Based On US Religious Decree

Posted on May 20, 2008
In Tsirlin v. Tsirlin, (NY Sup. Ct. Kings Co., May 14, 2008), a New York state trial court refused to recognize the validity of a divorce decree issued under unusual circumstances by an Israeli Rabbinical Court. The couple involved are Israeli citizens now living in New York...

Bush Tells Mid East Leaders That Democracy Does Not Threaten Islam

Posted on May 19, 2008
President Bush yesterday spoke at the World Economic Forum, meeting in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt. The New York Times characterized his speech to diplomats, policy makers and business executives as one that criticized Middle East leaders. It pressed them toward economic expansion, equal rights for women and democracy...

Recent Scholarly Articles and New Book of Interest

Posted on May 19, 2008
From SSRN:Teresa Stanton Collett, Advancing the Culture of Life Through Faithful Citizenship, (Journal of Religion and Society, 2008).Akiva Shapiro, Should the Lower Courts Save Taxpayer Standing? Interpreting Hein v. Freedom from Religion Foundation Narrowly Through the Lens of Judicial Spending,(Journal of Appellate Practice and Process, Vol...

Fired Engineer Sues-- Claims Religious Discrimination Over Christian Beliefs

Posted on May 19, 2008
Saturday's Cedar Rapids (IA) Gazette reports on an interesting employment discrimination lawsuit filed by Thomas Meeker, a former senior systems engineer claims Rockwell Collins. Meeker, a Christian who believes that homosexuality is a sin, refused to complete Rockwell Collins' diversity training program...

Bahrain Prohibits Political Activities At Mosques

Posted on May 19, 2008
According to today's Kahleej Times, Bahrain's Ministry of Justice and Islamic Affairs has issued a ban on political discussions and political activities at mosques in order to protect their sanctity. The ministry has also increased its inspection visits to all mosques in order to prevent their politicization and promotion of disunity among Muslims...

US Serviceman In Iraq Infuriates Muslims By Using Quran For Target Practice

Posted on May 19, 2008
CNN reports today on the furor that has been created by a U.S. staff sergeant in Iraq who earlier this month used a Quran for target practice at an Iraqi police station. Last Saturday, the U.S. commander of forces in Baghdad, Maj. Gen. Jeffery Hammond, appeared at a formal apology ceremony...

Proposed Religion Classes Stir Controversy In Bosnia-Herzegovina

Posted on May 19, 2008
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, proposals to introduce optional instruction in religion into kindergarten classes in Sarajevo have created controversy. Today's Southeast European Times reports that Bosnian Muslim parents generally favor the plan, while non-religious parents opposed to the plan have begun to circulate a petition captioned "Stop Religious Segregation in Kindergarten...

Franklin Graham Criticizes "Missionary-Invasion" Plans For Olympics

Posted on May 19, 2008
Evangelist Franklin Graham is concerned about the planned influx of Christian missionaries into China for the Beijing Olympics. Today's Charlotte (NC) News reports that Graham fears the illegal missionary-invasion strategy that some U.S. and foreign groups are planning could jeopardize the freedoms that have been won recently by Chinese Christians...

California Church Wins RLUIPA Claim Over Use Permit Process

Posted on May 18, 2008
In Grace Church of North County v. City of San Diego, (SD CA, May 9, 2008), a California federal district court concluded that the city of San Diego violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act when it granted Grace Church only a five year conditional use permit to occupy property it leased in the Rancho Bernardo Industrial Park...

Reactions To California Marriage Decision From Chief Justice and Religious Groups

Posted on May 18, 2008
Today's Los Angeles Times reports on its unusually candid interview with California Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald M. George about the Court's ruling last week legalizing same-sex marriage. George told the paper: "there are times when doing the right thing means not playing it safe...

FLDS Parents Served By Formal Publication Notice

Posted on May 18, 2008
The state of Texas this week formally published legal notices serving process on both identified and unknown FLDS parents of children held in custody by the Department of Family and Protective Services. The "Citations By Publication/Posting" (full text) were published in this week's Eldorado Success...

Dutch Cartoonist Arrested For Publishing Cartoons Insulting To Mulsims

Posted on May 18, 2008
Radio Netherlands reports that last Tuesday a Dutch cartoonist, drawing under the name Gregorius Nekschot was arrested for publishing cartoons that were "insulting to Muslims and to people of colour". Many were published online. The Public Prosecutors Office says that a complaint was filed against Nekschot in 2005, but because the cartoonist used a pseudonym it has taken this long to locate who he really is...

Court Rejects Challenge To Hawaii's Limits On Who Can Perform Marriages

Posted on May 18, 2008
In Woods-Bateman v. State of Hawaii, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 39661 (D HI, May 13, 2008), an Hawaii federal district court rejected a constitutional challenge to HRS � 572-12. The statute limits those who can be licensed to solemnize marriages to either clergy or judges...

Suit Threatened Over Wisconsin Village Land Sale To Preserve Cross

Posted on May 18, 2008
Last month, the Village Board of Holmen, Wisconsin reacted to a complaint about a display of a cross and a star on property it now owns by agreeing to sell the land and display to the Lions Club for $600. The Lions Club, which pledged to keep the display intact, was involved in its construction in 1960 on the land that was then privately owned...

Cert. Petition Filed In Oregon Religious Circumcision Case

Posted on May 17, 2008
Friday's Oregonian reports that last month a petition for certioarari was filed with the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of Boldt v. Boldt, (Docket No. 07-1348). In the case, a now-divorced mother who is a member of the Russian Orthodox Church is seeking to prevent her former husband-- a convert to Judaism-- from having their 12-year old son circumcised...

Uganda's Parliament Passes Education Bill Calling For Elective Courses In Religion

Posted on May 17, 2008
Catholic Information Service for Africa yesterday reported that Uganda's Parliament has passed an Education Bill that makes religious studies an elective in elementary and secondary schools in the country. The bill rejects the government's proposal to take religious education out of the school curriculum...

10th Circuit Hears Oral Arguments In College Aid Case

Posted on May 16, 2008
On Wednesday the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in Colorado Christian University v. Baker, a case challenging Colorado's exclusion of "pervasively sectarian institutions" from its tuition assistance programs for low-income students attending colleges and universities in the state...

Czech President Vetoes Anti-Discrimination Law

Posted on May 16, 2008
CeskeNoviny reports today that Czech Republic President Vaclav Klaus has vetoed a broad anti-discrimination law designed to assure equal access to education, work, health care and social advantages. The law would ban discrimination on the basis of religion, as well as on the basis of numerous other grounds (age, race, nationality, sexual orientation, health handicap, sex, and world outlook)...

Arizona Appellate Court Strikes Down School Voucher Programs

Posted on May 16, 2008
In Cain v. Horne, (AZ Ct. App., May 15, 2008), an Arizona appellate court found that two school voucher programs that were enacted by the state legislature in 2006 violates the Arizona Constitution. At issue are voucher programs for students with disabilities and for students in foster homes...

Coast Guard Agrees To Vaccine Exemption, Ending Lawsuit

Posted on May 16, 2008
Cath News reports today that the U.S. Coast Guard has now agreed to grant an exemption from its Hepatitis A vaccination requirement to Lt. Cmdr. Joseph J. Healy who has refused the vaccine on religious grounds. The version of the vaccine available in the U...

Kosher Meat Shortage Possible After Immigration Raids On Largest Producer

Posted on May 16, 2008
The Forward reported yesterday on a potential shortage of kosher meat in the United States after Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on Monday conducted its largest workplace raid this year. Some 390 workers at the Postville, Iowa meat processing plant operated by AgriProcessors were arrested...

Previous | Next

Related Law Bulletins

California's Proposed Student Civil Rights Act Gives Broad Definition to "Religion"
On Tuesday, the California Senate Judiciary Committee approved by ...

Fish on "Religion Without Truth"
Here's a (relatively) recent Stanley Fish Think Again column, call...