A Western Australian tribunal has found a Christian couple were discriminated against when their application to foster a child was rejected over their view that homosexuality is a sin. Byron and Keira Hordyk applied to become short-term foster carers in 2017 through . . . Continue reading →
Religious Freedom Watch
Religious Freedom Watch: Board Member Asked To Resign After Voice Concerns Over “Inappropriate” Sign
Activists are calling for a New Jersey school board member to resign after she voiced opposition to a poster she said was inappropriate for schoolchildren, and criticized gender and sexual identity curriculum at large. “Last night, I attended an elementary ‘Math Night.’ My 7 . . . Continue reading →
SCOTUS To Decide Whether Postal Service May Punish Carrier For Observing A Sunday Sabbath
The Supreme Court added eight new cases to its docket this afternoon. One of them, Groff v. DeJoy, raises issues of religious liberty and workplace accommodation. Gerald Groff claims that the U.S. Postal Service discriminated against him on the basis of his . . . Continue reading →
Religious Freedom Watch: Federal Court Blocked Mandate To Force Doctors To Violate Personal Moral Convictions
A federal court on Friday blocked a Biden administration mandate that would force religious hospitals and doctors to facilitate gender transitions against their sincerely held moral convictions. The Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court’s decision to block enforcement . . . Continue reading →
Religious Freedom Watch: Southwest Ordered To Reinstate Flight Attendant Fired For Pro-Life Beliefs
A federal court has ordered Southwest Airlines and the Transport Workers Union (TWU) to give former flight attendant Charlene Carter her job back after she was allegedly fired over her stance on abortion. As CBN News reported in July, after a five-year legal battle, . . . Continue reading →
In Colorado Is Christian Speech Is Less Protected By The First Amendment Than Other Speech?
As Alliance Defending Freedom’s Kristen Waggoner so aptly put it in her closing remarks, everyone in Colorado is allowed to speak freely about same-sex marriage except those who object to it. The Biden administration’s Deputy Solicitor General Brian Fletcher even admitted during . . . Continue reading →
Federal District Court Orders Airline To Return Job To Flight Attendant Fired For Her Pro-Life Views
A federal court has ordered Southwest Airlines and the Transport Workers Union (TWU) to give former flight attendant Charlene Carter her job back after she was allegedly fired over her stance on abortion. As CBN News reported in July, after a five-year . . . Continue reading →
Eighth Circuit Protects Physicians’ Religious Liberty Not To Perform “Gender Transition” Procedures
A federal court on Friday blocked a Biden administration mandate that would force religious hospitals and doctors to facilitate gender transitions against their sincerely held moral convictions. The Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court’s decision to block enforcement . . . Continue reading →
University Of Wyoming Bans Church Elder On The Basis Of Speech Content
The University of Wyoming’s (UW) decision to ban a church elder from operating a table inside the student union raises free speech concerns, lawmakers and legal experts told the Daily Caller News Foundation. UW restricted Laramie Faith Community Church elder Todd Schmidt’s . . . Continue reading →
Religious Freedom Watch: The Government Is Choosing Which Rights Are Worthy Of Protection
As Alliance Defending Freedom’s Kristen Waggoner so aptly put it in her closing remarks, everyone in Colorado is allowed to speak freely about same-sex marriage except those who object to it. The Biden administration’s Deputy Solicitor General Brian Fletcher even admitted during . . . Continue reading →
Religious Freedom Watch: Physician Assistant Fired For Not Using “Biology-Obscuring Pronouns”
First Liberty filed a lawsuit in federal court this week on behalf of Valerie Kloosterman, a physician assistant who was fired by the University of Michigan Health System because of her religious beliefs. She was terminated for seeking a religious accommodation from . . . Continue reading →
Religious Liberty Watch: Senate Bill On Same-Sex Marriage Advances
The Senate on Wednesday narrowly advanced legislation to protect same-sex marriage, sending it on to near-certain passage. In a 62-37 vote, 12 Republicans voted with all Democrats to move forward on the bill, after negotiators reached a bipartisan deal to include protections . . . Continue reading →
Religious Freedom Watch: Bakery Wins First Amendment Rights Case
A California state judge on Friday handed a victory to a bakery owner who refused to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple, citing religious objections. Kern County Superior Court Judge J. Eric Bradshaw ruled that California’s Department of Fair Housing . . . Continue reading →
Religious Freedom Watch: Alito’s Dissenting Opinion On Free Exercise Of Religion
The First Amendment guarantees the right to the free exercise of religion, and if that provision means anything, it prohibits a State from enforcing its own preferred interpretation of Holy Scriptures. Read More» Justice Samuel Alito | Dissenting opinion in Yeshiva University . . . Continue reading →
Religious Freedom Watch: Math Teacher’s First Amendment Rights Upheld
In a victory for free speech at public schools, Fort Riley Middle School officials have agreed to pay $95,000 in damages and attorneys’ fees for violating a math teacher’s First Amendment rights when they reprimanded and suspended her for addressing a student . . . Continue reading →
Religious Freedom Watch: Austin Fires Chaplain For His Religious Convictions
In June 2021, Dr. Fox began writing a series of blog posts on truth, justice, and the good news of the Gospel. One issue he wrote about was the unfairness of men competing in women’s sports. Dr. Fox wrote with no animus . . . Continue reading →
Washington State AG Threatens Civil Liberties Of Christian College
Seattle Pacific University, a private school associated with the Free Methodist Church, claims its rights are being violated by Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson, whose office launched an investigation into the school’s hiring practices. At issue is the school’s policy, prohibiting . . . Continue reading →
Consider The Implications Had Kennedy Lost
In Kennedy v Bremerton, the Bremerton, WA School District argued that, were Coach Kennedy allowed to go to the 50 yard line to pray after games, student-athletes might feel pressured to join him for fear of losing playing time etc. Continue reading
SCOTUS: 1st Amendment Protects Americans From Gov’t Reprisal For Engaging In Personal Religious Observance
Did The Court Just Replace The "Lemon Test"?
Held: The Free Exercise and Free Speech Clauses of the First Amendment protect an individual engaging in a personal religious observance from government reprisal; the Constitution neither mandates nor permits the government to suppress such religious expression…. …Here, no one questions that . . . Continue reading →
Supreme Court 9–0: Boston May Not Discriminate Against Christian Group
The SCOTUS unanimously ruled today, in Shurtleff v. City of Boston, that the City of Boston’s decision to exclude the “Camp Constitution” organization from a public flagpole, available to other groups, violated the Constitution of the United States. As Justice Kavanaugh explained, “This . . . Continue reading →