Church & State articles from April 2003

Church & State archives from April 2003

Istook launches another `pledge and prayer' crusade. (In The Capital).
April 1, 2003... Hoping to capitalize on a recent unpopular court ruling dealing with recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools, U.S. Rep. Ernest J. Istook (R-Okla.) is preparing to reintroduce his school prayer amendment. Istook's proposal,...

Supreme Court skips battle over N.Y. kosher laws. (In The Capital).
April 1, 2003... A New York law that attempted to enforce kosher food standards has been erased, after a recent action by the U.S. Supreme Court. On Feb. 24 the high court announced that it will not hear an appeal of a lower court's decision that New York's...

Alabama governor seeks Christian nation. (Around The States).
April 1, 2003... Alabama Gov. Bob Riley has asked his Religious Right political allies to enlist in a crusade to restore the Christian character of America. Speaking to the Alabama Christian Coalition's "Friends of the Family" Celebration March 8, Riley...

AU challenges crosses on city logo in New Mexico. (Around The States).
April 1, 2003... Attorneys with Americans United have asked government officials in Las Cruces, N.M., to remove three crosses from the city seal. In a Feb. 27 letter to Las Cruces Mayor Ruben Smith, City Manager Jim Ericson and City Attorney Fermin Rubio,...

One nation, under controversy: courts, congress, citizens battle over reference to God in Pledge of Allegiance.
April 1, 2003... William Donohue was not in a good mood. The acerbic leader of the New York-based Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights had just learned that a federal appeals court in California had decided to leave in place an earlier opinion...

The forgotten founder: long before Madison and Jefferson gave us church-state separation, Roger Williams fought for `soul liberty'.
April 1, 2003... In 1635, Roger Williams was appointed to pastoral duties at the local church in Salem, Mass. Williams, a Puritan preacher who had fled religious persecution in England, was already unpopular in Boston for rebuking civil authorities who seized...

Political posturing and the Pledge of Allegiance: under God, over the top. (Editorial).
April 1, 2003... The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals' Feb. 28 decision reaffirming that the Pledge of Allegiance is unconstitutional in public schools has brought out the worst in some of America's politicians and Religious Right leaders. Lapsing into...

Majority Leader DeLay helps Religious Right defend America's `Christian heritage'. (People & Events).
April 1, 2003... House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas) is helping a controversial Religious Right group raise money to defeat a so-called "war on Christianity" in America and preserve the nation's alleged "Christian heritage." DeLay has endorsed a...

Veterans Administration continues to implement `faith-based' programs. (People & Events).
April 1, 2003... In a push to implement the "faith-based" initiative, officials with the U.S. Veterans Administration are shifting funds to religiously affiliated organizations and moving to drop regulations that require religious groups to maintain...

Government cannot help build churches, AU tells federal housing agency. (People & Events).
April 1, 2003... Government agencies cannot use tax funds to build houses of worship, Americans United advised the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) last month. Americans United submitted the comments in response to a plan from the Bush...

Public schools may curb grad prayer, proselytizing, appellate court says. (People & Events).
April 1, 2003... Public schools may require graduation speakers to keep their remarks free of prayer and proselytization, a federal appeals court has ruled. Ruling in a case from the Bay Area of San Francisco, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said...

Evangelical group backs `faith-based' aid, but opposes government regs. (People & Events).
April 1, 2003... The National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) wants religious groups to get tax aid to provide social programs--but isn't interested in taking on new government regulations in the process. Meeting last month at a national conference in...

Ralph Reed made big bucks from Enron, FEC report unveils. (People & Events).
April 1, 2003... Former Christian Coalition director Ralph Reed found a lucrative career once he left TV preacher Pat Robertson's political outfit: As a consultant, Reed was paid hundreds of thousands of dollars by the Enron Corporation over a five-year period...

Religious Right leaders seek to hijack overseas AIDS prevention effort. (People & Events).
April 1, 2003... Religious Right organizations are pressuring President George W. Bush to use his $15-billion plan to combat AIDS in Africa to promote their religious agenda, including stressing sexual abstinence, downplaying the use of condoms and stopping...

AU blows whistle on Kansas coach's religious practices. (People & Events).
April 1, 2003... Attorneys with Americans United have warned officials at Kansas State University to discontinue religious activity and discriminatory hiring policies in the women's basketball program. Women's basketball coach Deb Patterson has instituted...

Visa program for religious workers gave cover to terrorists, complaint says. (People & Events).
April 1, 2003... Political radicals linked to extremist Muslim groups have exploited a federal program aimed at easing the entry of "religious workers" to the United States to slip potential terrorists into the country, according to a recent legal complaint....

W. Va. rejects effort to add `intelligent design' to science standards. (People & Events).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Public school students in West Virginia won't be learning about "intelligent design" anytime soon. The state's Board of Education voted unanimously Feb. 20 to adopt new science standards that require that students be tested only on...

TV preacher Robertson undergoes surgery for prostate cancer. (People & Events).
April 1, 2003... TV preacher Pat Robertson claims the power to heal people from sickness and disease through faith alone, but he didn't take any chances when he was diagnosed with prostate cancer recently. Robertson availed himself of the best doctors his money...

Falwell loses lawsuit against owner of parody website. (People & Events).
April 1, 2003... It's still legal to make fun of Jerry Falwell on the World Wide Web. Last month, a federal court in Virginia threw out a Falwell lawsuit against Gary Cohn, an Illinois man who runs the parody site www.jerryfalwell.com. The Lynchburg,...

Calif. seminary gets tax funds to promote Christian-Muslim dialogue. (People & Events).
April 1, 2003... Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif., has received a $1 million federal grant to launch a program aimed at strengthening dialogue between U.S. Muslim and Christian groups. Fuller will form a panel of 12 scholars, half of them...

Horizontal prayer--when religion becomes a weapon. (Viewpoint).
April 1, 2003... The Bush administration has been dealt a setback in its campaign to allow prayer in our public schools. The full 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has voted 15-9 to back the 2-1 vote by its earlier panel finding the Pledge of Allegiance...

Catholic Church can't use First Amendment defense. (Around The States).
April 1, 2003... Officials with the Roman Catholic Church cannot use the First Amendment's religious freedom guarantees to dismiss cases of sexual abuse filed against priests in Massachusetts, a state court has ruled. Superior Court Judge Constance Sweeney...

Tenn. Pagan parents sue over school promotion of religion. (Around The States).
April 1, 2003... A Tennessee family that practices a Pagan religion is suing public education officials in Union County, claiming that the school illegally promotes Christianity. Greg and Sarajane Tracy of Maynardville assert in a lawsuit that school...

Catholic Charities challenges `faith-based' regulations. (Around The States).
April 1, 2003... Catholic Charities of Maine has filed a federal lawsuit asserting that the city of Portland has no right to withhold public funds from the group because it refuses to extend employee benefits to domestic partners. At issue is a two-year...

Churches not welcome, says Saudi Arabian leader. (Around The World).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Don't look for any Christian churches to be built soon in Saudi Arabia. The ruling family of the oil-rich desert kingdom reconfirmed recently that Islam is the country's official faith and other religions are not welcome. Defense Minister...

All you need is love--not a `faith-based' marriage grant. (Letters).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... My husband and I are atheists and have been married to each other for 41 years. We didn't need taxpayer-funded counseling or other incentives to achieve this ("My Big Fat GOP Wedding: Bush Administration Marriage Grants Seek To Wed Church And...

St. Valentine's Day massacre? (Letters).
April 1, 2003... Here it is Valentine's Day, and appropriately I'm reading your article, "My Big, Fat, GOP Wedding," that I got in the mail yesterday. I have a great idea on how to promote marriages and prevent divorces. Well, it's actually two ideas, not just...

Churches and politics: naming names. (Letters).
April 1, 2003... Much has been written about the fine line separating religion and politics. In my mind it is crystal clear. Churches can and should teach and discuss moral principles and issues as much as they like, but when they name names of politicians as...

On the commandments and evolution. (Letters).
April 1, 2003... The posting of the Ten Commandments and opposition to evolution appear to be two of the main objectives of Religious Right activists. If they were to succeed in their efforts to have the Ten Commandments posted in public schools and...

AU: keep up the good work! (Letters).
April 1, 2003... I am a working-class single father of two teenagers, and the current U.S. economy is squeezing me pretty hard. But it scares me to see an erosion of my children's future liberties by forces which are gaining strength in American society. ...

Right decision on the Pledge. (Letters).
April 1, 2003... The federal appeals court decision on the Pledge of Allegiance was the right one. The country has significantly changed in the 50 years since "under God" was added to the Pledge. We now have a pluralist society that is multi-religious. No one...

Pat and separation: an amazing conversion by Reverend Robertson? (Perspective).
April 1, 2003... As some of you already know, Americans United has a staff member who, among other duties, watches each riveting episode of TV preacher Pat Robertson's "700 Club." Right now that person is Communications Assistant Donya Khalili, a recent...