Objective coverage of church-state and religious liberty developments, with extensive links to primary sources.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Newsweek Cover Story Challenges Biblical Opposition To Gay Marriage
Pope Visits Italian Embassy To Mark Upcoming Lateran Treaty Anniversary
Monday, December 15, 2008
Supreme Court To DC Circuit: Reconsider Gitmo Case Involving Religious Harassment
Christmas 2008 At the White House-- Theme and Cards
Newdow Loses Defamation Action Against Minister
Australian State's Schools Will Add Humanism As Alternative Class
Recent Articles and Book of Interest
- Stephen A. Newman, From John F. Kennedy's 1960 Campaign Speech to Christian Supremacy: Religion in Modern Presidential Politics, (New York Law School Law Review, Forthcoming).
- Brian D. Galle, The LDS Church, Proposition Eight, and the Federal Law of Charities, (Northwestern University Law Review, Forthcoming).
- Douglas Linder, Falwell v. Flynt Trial, 1984, (December 4, 2008).
From SmartCILP:
- Mark David Welton, Islam, the West, and the Rule of Law, 19 Pace International Law Review 169-194 (2007).
New Book:
- Peter Cane (ed.), Law and Religion in Theoretical and Historical Context, (Cambridge Univ. Press, Nov. 2008).
Indonesian Cult Leader Arrested, Charged With Blasphemy
Sunday, December 14, 2008
New Alabama Christian Youth Facility To Give Judges A Placement Option
First and foremost, we are a Christian ministry built on the foundation of God’s Word. We are not religious, but we take advantage of the power found in a relationship with Jesus to witness the healing of young lives.
New Texas Sheriff Reaches Out To Sikhs In Light of Recent Incident
Witch Sues University of Nebraska For Employment Discrimination
Publications Charge Army With Improper Aid To Missionaires Filming TV Show
Recent Prisoner Free Exercise Cases
In Mello v. Martinez, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 98547, (ED CA, Nov. 25, 2008), a California federal magistrate judge found that a Native American inmate had failed to adequately allege free exercise or RLUIPA violations in connection with authorities' refusal to permit him to take various religious objects with him when he was transferred to a different facility. The court dismissed the complaint with leave to amend.
In Gonzalez v. Corrections Corporation of America, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 98667, (ND MS, Dec. 5, 2008), a Mississippi federal court held that a Muslim inmate's religious exercise was not substantially burdened by his failing to receiving meals that met his religious requirements 13 times over a course of 8 months. The court held it was sufficient that the rest of the time he was served vegetarian meals which met his religious requirements, even though he would have preferred kosher meals. The court rejected his claims under RLUIPA, the free exercise and the equal protection clauses. In reaching its decision, the court assumed without deciding that RLUIPA applies to a state prison that has been privatized.
In Bergmann v. Hanna, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 100329 (D DE, Dec. 11, 2008), a Delaware federal district court rejected a claim that a prisoner's free exercise rights were infringed when on one day she was denied permission to attend chapel services to protect her from others in attendance.
Gov. Palin's Wasilla Church Hit By Suspected Arson
Gov. Palin stopped by the church this morning, and she told an assistant pastor that she apologizes if the incident is in any way connected to the undeserved negative attention the church has received since she became a vice-presidential candidate on Aug. 29. Whatever the motives of the arsonist, the governor has faith in the scriptural passage that what was intended for evil will in some way be used for good.Arson investigators say that as of now they have no leads as to intent or motive and no indication at this time of a political motivation.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Suit Says False Story of No Circumcision Is Libelous
Ohio School Board Sued By Teacher Who Wants To Divert Union Dues To Charity
Jewish Charities Are Victims of Madoff Wall Street Fraud
In addition, the North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System lost $5 million in the fraud. The Texas-based Julian J. Levitt Foundation that focuses on Jewish causes lost about $6 million. Yeshiva University, on whose board Madoff served, is still attempting to determine how much it had invested with him. Madoff's own foundation that contributed extensively to Jewish charities also is now gone. Haaretz reports that Madoff resigned from Yeshiva's board on Friday. It also suggests that a number of other Jewish philanthropists, in New York and Palm Beach, have likely lost significant amounts in the fraud.The programs of the Robert I. Lappin Charitable Foundation and the Robert I. Lappin 1992 Supporting Foundation are discontinued, effectively immediately. This includes Youth to Israel and Teachers to Israel.
The money used to fund the programs of both Foundations was invested with Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities and all the assets have been frozen by the federal courts..... The money needed to fund the programs of the Lappin Foundations is gone. The Foundation staff has been terminated today.
"It is with a heavy heart that I make this announcement," said Robert I. Lappin, Foundation trustee. "The Foundations' programs have touched thousands of lives over many years in our efforts to help keep our children Jewish."
UPDATE: The Los Angeles Jewish Community Foundation can be added to the list of victims. Luke Ford.net reports that some $18 million of the Foundation's Common Investment Pool (currently valued as 11% of its assets) was invested with Madoff.
UPDATE 2: Monday's Wall Street Journal [subscription required] reports on additional investors who were victimized, including foundations of two well-known Jewish philanthropists: Elie Wiesel's Foundation for Humanity and Steven Spielberg's Wunderkinder Foundation (which received 70% of its 2006 income from Madoff investments).
UPDATE 3: Monday's Haaretz has more information on Jewish foundations that were impacted: including the Chais Family Foundation which contributes heavily to Jewish causes and the Gift of Life Foundation, a Jewish bone marrow registry that to which Madoff contributes substantial amounts.
9th Circuit Rejects Tax Deduction for Religious Day School Tuition
Student's Op-Ed On Evolution Rejected For Class Magazine
Principal Kevin Bezy says the piece needs to be revised because "It didn't present the theory with a sensitivity for those who hold other theories." The teacher of the course says that Principal Bezy was concerned that the article sounded angry at the church and could lead to community backlash. Brandon Creasy says his article was censored because the principal does not believe in evolution. Bezy says his personal views are irrelevant; he was acting in an unbiased way. Teacher David Campbell says he is using the situation to teach his class about the First Amendment and its application to student publications. [Thanks to Scott Mange for the lead.]
UPDATE: Commenters to this posting point out that the principal may have had other more legitimate reasons to reject the essay-- namely its resemblance to one available online.
Moratorium Placed On More Displays In Washington State Capitol
UPDATE: One of the applications put on hold by the moratorium is from the notorious Westboro Baptist Church, best known for picketing Iraq and Afghanistan veterans' funerals. Its proposed display was a poster captioned "Santa Claus Will Take You To Hell!" Dispatches from the Culture Wars (12/14) has more, along with a photo of the proposed display.