Religious Liberty

Conservative Activists Gather To Plot Defense Of 'Religious Liberty'

Religion News Service | Lauren Markoe | Posted 05.25.2012

Read More: Religious Freedom, Video, Defending Religious Liberty, Religious Liberty, Religious Liberty Defense, Religion-and-Politics, Religion News

WASHINGTON (RNS) U.S. Catholic bishops have used the Obama administration's contraception mandate as Exhibit A in their high-stakes defense of "religi...

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Geert Wilders, Marked For Death: A Muslim's Response

Qasim Rashid | Posted 05.24.2012

Read More: Islam, Geert Wilders Islam, Religious Liberty, Terrorism, Geert Wilders, Prophet Muhammad, Quran, Marked for Death, Religious Pluralism, Religion News
Qasim Rashid

Wilders promises many things in his book, above all that, "we must speak the truth." Wilders does not fulfill his promises, however, and his disregard for truth is the most astounding.

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Obama And The Two Types Of Marriage

Melissa Rogers | Posted 05.17.2012

Read More: Obama, Religious Liberty, Same-Sex Marriage, Religion and Politics, Gay Marriage, Christianity, Obama Gay Marriage, Civil Unions, Religion News
Melissa Rogers

Americans must decide whether they support or oppose recognition of same-sex marriage in our civil laws, but they also must determine how religious objectors will be treated where same-sex marriages are recognized.

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Pulpit Politics: Religious Leaders Should Persuade, Not Pronounce

Henry G. Brinton | Posted 05.16.2012

Read More: Catholic Church, Contraception, Religious Liberty, Religious Freedom, Religion and Sexuality, Christianity, Religion and Politics, Religion News
Henry G. Brinton

Yes, we all need guidance as to what constitutes a moral approach to contentious issues. But we aren't helped by resolutions that force people to be either insiders or outsiders, driven even further apart in a society that's already politically polarized.

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Religion's Death Wish?

Robert V. Taylor | Posted 05.20.2012

Read More: Kindness, Contraception, Religious Discrimination, Religious Liberty, Compassion, Religion and Politics, Religion News
Robert V. Taylor

The debate over whether religiously affiliated institutions have to provide access to contraception is presented by some as a defense of religious liberty. The liberty being defended is revealed to be no liberty at all.

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Opening a Gate in the Wall of Separation of Church and State

Anthony D. Romero | Posted 05.13.2012

Read More: Religious Liberty, Ron Paul, Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Religious Freedom, Newt Gingrich, Separation of Church and State, GOP Candidates, Politics News
Anthony D. Romero

For an election that was supposed to be all about the economy, we're spending a lot of time on the role religion should play in public life.

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Jon Ward

Lawsuit Against Obama Birth Control Mandate Signals Culture Wars Jump

HuffingtonPost.com | Jon Ward | Posted 03.13.2012

Read More: Video, Culture Wars, Becket Fund, Birth Control Mandate, Obama's Birth Control Mandate, Religious Liberty, Contraception Mandate, President Obama, Becket Fund Lawsuit, Separation of Church and State, Politics News

WASHINGTON -- For 17 years, The Becket Fund has been a small, nonprofit law firm known for defending religious liberty cases for people of many faiths...

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President Obama: Render Unto God the Things that Are God's

Sister Mary Ann Walsh | Posted 05.03.2012

Read More: Sister Mary Ann Walsh, Sterilization, Bill of Rights, Jesus, Religious Liberty, Hosanna Tabor, Religious Freedom, Contraception, Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, U.S. Constitution, Barack Obama, U.S. Supreme Court, Religion News
Sister Mary Ann Walsh

Jesus is often quoted for his saying to "Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's." The rest of the quote could be a message to the Obama Administration: "Render unto God the things that are God's."

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Does Providing Contraception to Women = Hating Religion?

Frank Schaeffer | Posted 05.01.2012

Read More: Mormons, Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Roman Catholic Church Sex Abuse Scandal, Newt Gingrich 2012, Religious Liberty, Politics News
Frank Schaeffer

Who are these paragons of tolerance demanding that the rest of us respect the reclassification of robbing women of their right to use contraceptives as "religious freedom?"

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Religious Liberty vs. Reproductive Liberty: A New Political Minefield Pits Women Against the Church

Lauren Brown Jarvis | Posted 04.18.2012

Read More: Catholics Birth Control, Catholic Church, Birth Control, Catholics Contraception, Affordable Care Act, Religious Liberty, Religious Freedom, Foster Friess, Foster Friess Contraception, Politics News
Lauren Brown Jarvis

Reproductive liberty for American women should be as important as any other right. At the end of the day, what women ultimately decide to do with our bodies should remain between us, our partners, our doctors, our God. This is the religious freedom we want.

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Why Evangelicals Must Defend Muslims

Skye Jethani | Posted 04.14.2012

Read More: Islam, First Amendment, Muslims, Religious Liberty, 9/11, Christianity, Religious Persecution, Interfaith Dialogue, Evangelicals, Interfaith, Teachings of Jesus, Islam and Christianity, Religion News
Skye Jethani

As Christians, we cannot demand that everyone share our beliefs. But we can demand that everyone share our freedom. For where this freedom exists, we can be sure that Christ will be lifted up.

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Christians, Gays And Academic Freedom (Part II)

David Moshman | Posted 04.07.2012

Read More: Counseling, Julea Ward, Academic Freedom, Christians, First Amendment, Gay Rights, Religious Liberty, Jennifer Keeton, Ethics, Religion and Politics, Religion and Sexuality, Religion News
David Moshman

The two courts agreed that counselor-client interaction is not a forum for free speech but rather reflects a professional relationship subject to the ethical norms of the profession.

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The Right of Refusal Should Belong to Women

Nancy K. Kaufman | Posted 04.03.2012

Read More: Women's Rights, Social Justice Jewish Women, Birth Control, Religious Liberty, Women?S Prevention Health Services, Contraception, National Council of Jewish Women, Abortion, Gender and Religion, Planned Parenthood, Women News
Nancy K. Kaufman

Although there are differing religious views on the use of contraception, it should be up to women to decide on whether and when to use contraception based on their own beliefs and needs.

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So Religious Liberty Now Means The Freedom To Endanger Women's Health

James Heffernan | Posted 04.01.2012

Read More: Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities, Abortion, Birth Control, Religious Liberty, Andrea Saul, US Department of Health and Human Services, Michael Galligan-Stierle, Georgetown University, Mitt Romney, Roman Catholic Church, Contraception, Christian Scientists, Religion and Politics, Religion News
James Heffernan

Let's get something straight: religious liberty is not absolute. Under our system of justice, there is no such thing as an absolute right to anything.

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Religious Liberty Got A Little Stronger Today

Sally Steenland | Posted 03.22.2012

Read More: Religion, Women's Health, Reproductive Rights, No Cost Contraceptive Coverage, Religious Liberty and Women's Rights, Women, Religious Liberty, Contraceptive Coverage, Religion News
Sally Steenland

Allowing women to make decisions based on their conscience when it comes to key matters of family and health is an example of religious liberty at its best.

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Christians, Gays And Academic Freedom

David Moshman | Posted 02.21.2012

Read More: Counseling, Academic Freedom, Christians, First Amendment, Gay Rights, Religious Liberty, Keeton v. Anderson-Wiley, College News
David Moshman

The decision of a federal circuit court in Keeton v. Anderson-Wiley is not about either Christians or gays. It's a victory for academic freedom and professional ethics, which are fully consistent with both religious liberty and gay rights.

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Do Unto Others: U.S. Bishops, Religious Liberty And Gay Americans' Tax Dollars

John Mattras | Posted 01.28.2012

Read More: Marriage, Catholic, Vatican, Gay, Bishops, Religion and Politics, Religious Liberty, Religion and Health Care, Do Unto Others, Religion and Tax, Religion News
John Mattras

It is time for the bishops to own up to the obvious reality that denying services to a class of individuals is, in fact, discrimination.

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Why I Get a Nagging Feeling Every Time I Hear the Phrase 'Religious Liberty'

Alvin McEwen | Posted 01.21.2012

Read More: Gay Rights, Religious Liberty, Gay Marriage, Faith-Based Discrimination, Religiously Based Discrimination, Discrimination on Religious Grounds, Gay Voices News
Alvin McEwen

I almost understand the "religious liberty" argument, but then comes that nagging feeling in the back of my mind that just won't go away, the feeling that "religious liberty" is just another way of saying "allowed discrimination."

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Catholic Bishops Prepare For Political Battle

AP | By RACHEL ZOLL | Posted 11.13.2011

Read More: Catholic Church, Catholic Bishops, American Constitution, Religious Liberty, Church and Politics, Anti-Christianity, Church and State, Video, Religion News

-- The mood among many U.S. Roman Catholic bishops was captured in a recent speech by Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia. His talk, called "Ca...

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Fix The U.S. International Religious Freedom Commission or Fuggedaboutit

Suhag A. Shukla, Esq. | Posted 12.04.2011

Read More: Religious Freedom, Hindu American Foundation, Human Rights, Hindus, Anti-Muslim Bias, Hindu Americans, Uscirf, Religious Liberty, Religious Freedom Commission Reform, Religious Tolerance, Religion in America, U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, Religion News
Suhag A. Shukla, Esq.

This November, if the Senate does not take action on the bill to reform the USCIRF, yet another chapter of our country's myopic approach to faith-based foreign policy might just come to an end.

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Critics Push Obama To Change Faith-Based Hiring Rules

Posted 08.22.2011

Read More: Religion in America, Obama Faith Council, Religious Liberty, George W. Bush, Religious Freedom, Obama Administration, Barack Obama Faith Based Groups, Separation of Church and State, Bush Faith-Based Program, Obama Criticism, Religion News

By Lauren Markoe Religion News Service WASHINGTON (RNS) A group of clergy and lawmakers is trying to overturn a nearly decade-old policy that allows ...

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Israeli Ministry Targeting So-Called 'Sects' and 'Cults'

Joseph K. Grieboski | Posted 07.31.2011

Read More: Religious Freedom, Religious Minorities, Israeli Government, Israel, Netanyahu, Religious Liberty, Cults, Religion News
Joseph K. Grieboski

Classifying religious groups into "religions" and "sects" violates religious human rights standards. It is impermissible and arbitrary for the government to confer benefits on groups it classifies as "religions."

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The Case Of The Disappearing Religious Freedom Report

Joseph K. Grieboski | Posted 06.17.2011

Read More: State Department Human Rights Report, Religious Persecution, Religious Liberty, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Human Rights, Ambassador for Religious Liberty, International Human Rights Report, International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, Religious Freedom, Obama Administration, Religion News
Joseph K. Grieboski

As the issue of religious liberty appears to become more and more of a lost cause to the Obama Administration, the issue takes on a critically important role in the world.

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Supreme Court To Hear Case Of Fired Church Teacher

Posted 05.29.2011

Read More: Equal Opportunity Employment, First Amendment Rights, Supreme Court, Religion, Religious Liberty, Freedom of Religion, Church Employees, Eeoc, Cheryl Perich, Scotus, Religion News

By Adelle M. Banks Religion News Service WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court agreed Monday (March 28) to consider whether a teacher who was fired from a ...

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Lift High The Cross? Religion In Public Spaces

John Witte Jr. | Posted 05.27.2011

Read More: Religious Freedom in America, First Amendments, Religious Tolerance, Religious Liberty, European Convention of Human Rights, Religion in Schools, Religious Freedom in Europe, Italian Supreme Court, Lautsi v. Italy, Religion News
John Witte Jr.

The case echoes many familiar arguments that the U.S. Supreme Court has used over the past three decades to maintain displays of crèches, crosses and Decalogues on government property.

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