For more than 75 years, Camp IdRaHaJe has welcomed children each summer to hear the Gospel, build character, and grow in faith. Nestled in Bailey, Colorado, the camp’s name comes from a simple hymn lyric: “I’d rather have Jesus.” In 2024, the . . . Continue reading →
Religious Freedom Watch
Second Circuit Rules For Christian School
Mid Vermont Christian School forfeited a girls’ playoff basketball game to avoid playing a team with a transgender athlete. The school believes that forcing girls to compete against biological males would affirm that those males are females, in violation of its religious . . . Continue reading →
On Theocracy
I have explained at great length here why those who deny our covenant theology, our hermeneutics, and our doctrine of the sacraments are not Reformed. All the Reformed confessions of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries teach paedobaptism and denounce the rejection of . . . Continue reading →
The American Experiment
I tried not to write anything about the murder of Charlie Kirk. I did not want to add to the noise, but in one of his recent press conference appearances, Spencer Cox, the governor of Utah, used the expression “The American Experiment.” . . . Continue reading →
Ninth Circuit Shields World Vision In Discrimination Case
The panel reversed the district court’s summary judgment for Aubry McMahon and remanded for entry of summary judgment in favor of World Vision, Inc., in McMahon’s lawsuit against World Vision alleging discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, and marital status under Title . . . Continue reading →
Sixth Circuit Denies That A Roman Catholic College’s Vaccine Mandate Imposed An Undue Burden On His Religious Liberty
COLE, Circuit Judge. Matthew Warman, a former graduate student at Mount St. Joseph University (MSJU), objected to taking the COVID-19 vaccine on religious grounds. When MSJU announced that it would require all students and employees to be vaccinated, Warman applied for a . . . Continue reading →
Ninth Circuit Panel: Oregon’s Requirement That Adoptive Parents Affirm Trans Ideology Violates The First Amendment
The panel reversed the district court’s denial of plaintiff Jessica Bates’s motion for preliminary injunctive relief and remanded with instructions to enter a preliminary injunction enjoining the Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) from applying Oregon Administrative Rule § 413- 200-0308(2 (k)—a . . . Continue reading →
Persecution Of Christians In India On The Rise
The Christian community in India is under relentless attack from Hindu nationalist groups, particularly in certain states. Reports indicate a sharp rise in violence, with 640 incidents of discrimination and attacks recorded in 2024 alone, a fourfold increase from a decade ago. . . . Continue reading →
The New Inquisition: Illiberalism In The Modern Academy
Most college students are taught that, in the pre-Enlightenment world, religious zealots persecuted enlightened astronomers for daring to challenge deeply held but ignorant religious beliefs on the basis of early modern science. Whether that story is true as told is immaterial. That . . . Continue reading →
Wisconsin Man Files Religious Discrimination Suit Against Corporation
The Wisconsin Institute for law and Liberty (“WILL”) represents Spencer Wimmer, a former employee of Generac power systems, Inc. (“Generac”), who was discriminated against by Generac on the basis of religion in violation of federal law under Title VII of the Civil . . . Continue reading →
The Red Scarf Girl And The Natural Rights Of Parents
In her celebrated book “Red Scarf Girl,” author Ji-li Jiang recounts growing up during the Cultural Revolution in China. She and millions of others had to choose between obeying the country’s communist government or obeying her parents. “’Now, you have to choose . . . Continue reading →
Religious Freedom Watch: U.S. District Court Rules In Favor Of Church In Zoning Dispute
In November 2023, Defendant Santa Ana City Council adopted a resolution denying the application of Plaintiff Anchor Stone Christian Church for permission to use its property, located at 2398 Daimler Street, Santa Ana, California (the “Property”), for religious assembly. Following the denial . . . Continue reading →
SCOTUS Takes Up Important Case With Far Reaching Consequences For Free Speech And Religious Freedom
The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to weigh in on the constitutionality of Colorado’s ban on “conversion therapy” – that is, the effort to “convert” someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity. That announcement came as part of a list of orders released on Monday . . . Continue reading →
DOJ Sides With Church In Zoning Dispute
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has intervened in a case involving a city’s use of zoning ordinances to stop the expansion of a church congregation. On March 3, the Justice Department section for the Western District of Pennsylvania filed a statement . . . Continue reading →
Another Win For Religious Freedom And Freedom Of Speech
A Virginia public school district has agreed to pay $575,000 to resolve a lawsuit brought by a Christian teacher who was fired for refusing to use the self-declared pronouns of a trans-identified student. The West Point School Board reached a settlement with . . . Continue reading →
Swiss Evangelicals Banned From Using Lake Geneva For Baptisms
An evangelical church in Cologny, in the Swiss canton of Geneva, has decided to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), the Federal Court’s decision against public baptisms on Lake Geneva. It has done so supported by the Swiss Evangelical Alliance (SEA-RES) and . . . Continue reading →
Charlotte IHOP To Pay $40K To Christian Cook Over Refusal To Grant Him A Sabbath
A Charlotte IHOP franchise will pay $40,000 to settle claims of religious discrimination and retaliation. Suncakes NC, LLC, a North Carolina-based company, and Suncakes, LLC, a Texas-based company doing business as IHOP, will pay $40,000 and provide other relief to settle a religious . . . Continue reading →
Study: Biden-Harris Education Office Targeted Christian Colleges
This month, voters chose to turn the page on the Biden-Harris Administration and re-elect Donald J. Trump as the 47th President of the United States. This was an enormous win for the American people. It’s clear that Trump’s vision for freedom, populism, . . . Continue reading →
First Amendment Watch: Teacher May Sue Over Being Forced To Use Trans Pronouns
After years of litigation over whether he had a viable claim, a Virginia teacher fired in 2018 for failing to follow his school’s transgender pronoun policy is going to get his day in court finally. On December 14th, the Virginia Supreme Court revived Peter . . . Continue reading →
Vermont Accused Of Discriminating Against Christian School
Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys representing Mid Vermont Christian School and two families filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday [November, 21, 2023] against Vermont officials for denying the Christian school and its students from participating in the state’s tuition program and sports league because of . . . Continue reading →