This morning I am thinking of younger American Christians, especially of those who have come of age during the Trump administration. A young person who was 16 when the Trump administration began is now approaching 20 and is perhaps becoming more politically . . . Continue reading →
…The applicants have clearly established their entitlement to relief pending appellate review. They have shown that their First Amendment claims are likely to prevail, that denying them relief would lead to irreparable injury, and that granting relief would not harm the public . . . Continue reading →
If social distancing is good enough for offices, colleges, and universities within the Commonwealth, it is good enough for religious private K–12 schools that benefit from constitutional protection. Continue reading
Language regarding accreditation of religious insti- tutions of higher education in the Higher Education Opportunity Act could be interpreted to require accrediting bodies to accredit religious institutions that discriminate or that do not meet science based curricula standards. Continue reading →
If your congregation does not have a lawyer, it should. Continue reading
“The Constitution guarantees the free exercise of religion. It says nothing about the freedom to play craps or blackjack, to feed tokens into a slot machine, or to engage in any other game of chance. But the Governor of Nevada apparently has different priorities. Claiming virtually unbounded power to restrict constitutional rights during the COVID–19 pandemic, he has issued a directive that severely limits attendance at religious services. A church, synagogue, or mosque, regardless of its size, may not admit more than 50 persons, but casinos and certain other favored facilities may admit 50% of their maximum occupancy—and in the case of gigantic Las Vegas casinos, this means that thousands of patrons are allowed.” Continue reading →
After nearly two months of advising that Hermiston Christian School could provide in-person instruction to the 51 students enrolled in its K-12 program, Brown reversed course and, on July 29, ordered private schools in Umatilla County and elsewhere to remain closed while . . . Continue reading →
The Equality Act adds the phrase “sex (including sexual orientation and gender identity)” to our nation’s civil rights laws that ban discrimination on the basis of race. This means the law would suddenly treat people as racists if they dare to dissent . . . Continue reading →
…This action concerns the expulsion of two students from a seminary school for violating school policies against same-sex marriage and extramarital sexual activity. Plaintiffs claim violations of: (1) Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, 20 U.S.C. §§ 1681, et seq. . . . Continue reading →
The first war fought in the name of the new American Republic was the “War for Independence” (1775–83). In the Declaration of Independence (1776), the American founders declared, in the preamble, “ We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men . . . Continue reading →
There are places where religious liberties are being trampled, where Christians (and members of other religions) are not free to gather and to worship God according to Scripture or conscience. In such places people face arrest or worse simply for gathering to . . . Continue reading →
Grace Community Church, Sun Valley, CA has been at the center of a heated theological and cultural controversy over whether churches should abide by public health orders (ostensibly) intended to curb the Coronavirus and if so, how. As previously chronicled in this . . . Continue reading →
The Constitution guarantees the free exercise of religion. It says nothing about the freedom to play craps or blackjack, to feed tokens into a slot machine, or to engage in any other game of chance. But the Governor of Nevada apparently has . . . Continue reading →
In this morning’s New York Times three staff reporters filed a story datelined “Pendleton, Ore” (odd question—why not use the standard postal abbreviation for Oregon, which has been in use for decades?) and it begins ominously: “Weeks after President Trump demanded that . . . Continue reading →
The legislation handed down by the Court will have far-reaching consequences, including the eventual destruction of all-women’s sports. As I tell my students, and constantly remind myself, “remember, when you sign on to a proposition you are signing on to all it . . . Continue reading →
…New Harvest Christian Fellowship has rented space along Main Street in Salinas for more than 25 years. Their growing congregation prompted leaders to recognize several years ago that the church needed a larger facility. … With property at a premium in Northern . . . Continue reading →
There is only one word for what the Court has done today: legislation. The document that the Court releases is in the form of a judicial opinion interpreting a statute, but that is deceptive. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of . . . Continue reading →
In California we are in phase 2 of unlocking the public-health lockdown imposed in light of the Coronavirus (Covid-19). One of the costs of the stay-at-home has been a prohibition of all public gatherings. In phase two meetings are now allowed but . . . Continue reading →
Draper shared her story Monday with members of the Utah Senate Judiciary, Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee, which voted unanimously to endorse a bill that would effectively decriminalize polygamy among consenting adults. She testified alongside the bill’s sponsor, Spanish Fork Republican . . . Continue reading →
James Anderson is among many calling attention to the case of a teacher who has been fired by the West Point, Virginia school board for refusing to submit to their demand that he refer to students who belong biologically to one sex . . . Continue reading →