Church & State articles from February 2004

Church & State archives from February 2004

Bush school voucher plan for D.C. approved by Congress.(In The Capital)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... A religious school voucher program proposed by the Bush administration for the District of Columbia has been approved by Congress. The plan, the first federally funded voucher program, was included in an omnibus spending bill that passed...

Commandments crusaders target party platforms.(In The Capital)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... A coalition of Religious Right groups is urging the Democratic and Republican parties to show support for government displays of the Ten Commandments and for the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance. The coalition, which has...

Appeals court upholds religious liberty law for prisoners.(Around The States)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... A federal appeals court has ruled that a federal law intended to protect the religious liberty rights of prisoners does not violate the First Amendment. On Dec. 8, a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that the...

Americans United opposes Legislative Prayer in Maryland.(Around The States)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Americans United for Separation of Church and State has urged Maryland state lawmakers to stop their practice of opening Senate sessions with sectarian invocations. In a Dec. 8 letter to members of the Senate Special Commission on...

Pulpit politics: religious right leaders press for passage of U.S. Rep. Jones' Church electioneering bill.
February 1, 2004... The Rev. Jerry Falwell is gearing up for the 2004 election season. Last summer, the TV preacher detailed his partisan political agenda to Fox News commentator Bill O'Reilly. "I am a strong Bush supporter," said the Lynchburg, Va.-based...

Project fair play: Americans United to educate religious leaders about laws governing church electioneering.
February 1, 2004... Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean readily acknowledges that he's never been one to wear his religion on his sleeve. But that hasn't stopped him from making a spate of visits at predominantly African-American churches in South...

Holy orders? In a major test of ecclesiastial authority, the nation's Roman Catholic bishops are demanding that catholic officeholders follow church law.
February 1, 2004... Bishop Raymond Burke of La Crosse, Wisc., is totally out of patience with Roman Catholic officeholders who break with the hierarchy's view on issues such as reproductive rights, euthanasia and stem-cell research. Last year, Burke decided...

Of popes and power: in the middle ages, the Vatican reigned supreme.
February 1, 2004... In their effort to crack down on dissenting Catholic politicians in America, the Vatican and bishops may be feeling a little nostalgia for what they would consider "the good old days"--a period of several centuries when church authority in...

Politics and the pulpit: throwing the vote seekers out of the temple.(Editorial)(Editorial)
February 1, 2004... Religion is suddenly all the rage in Campaign 2004. Democratic candidate Howard Dean says he intends to talk more about his faith on the campaign trail. The former Vermont governor says he was uncomfortable talking about his beliefs in the...

Robertson says God told him Bush will win reelection in a 'blowout'.(People & Events)
February 1, 2004... Anyone hoping for a replay of 2000's nail-biter presidential election is bound to be disappointed by the latest news from TV preacher Pat Robertson: God has assured the Virginia Beach televangelist that President George W. Bush will be...

'Faith-based' initiative can yield miracles, says President Bush during La. church visit.(People & Events)
February 1, 2004... President George W. Bush traveled to New Orleans last month in yet another effort to jump-start his "faith-based initiative," which remains stalled in Congress. Bush touted the plan Jan. 15 during remarks to the Union Bethel AME Church, a...

Ohio voucher students perform at same rate as public school peers.(People & Events)
February 1, 2004... Students taking part in Cleveland's private school voucher program are performing at the same rate as their counterparts in the public system, a new study has shown. Researchers at Indiana University issued the final report of a five-year...

Falwell helps car dealers escape merchandise tax.(People & Events)
February 1, 2004... Virginia car dealers trying to escape a tax on inventory have found a new friend willing to help them for a price: the Rev. Jerry Falwell. Amherst County, Va., has a law requiring business owners to pay a tax on all inventory held on site...

Federal appeals court rules against Ky. Ten Commandments display.(People & Events)
February 1, 2004... Efforts by three Kentucky counties to camouflage Ten Commandments displays by posting other documents alongside the Decalogue failed in December when a federal appeals court struck down the scheme. The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals...

Critics say U.S. Park Service appears to be on religious crusade.(People & Events)
February 1, 2004... Recent actions have led some people to conclude that the U.S. Park Service, the federal agency responsible for the maintenance and promotion of America's national parks, is on a religious crusade. Several news outlets have recently reported...

Muslim girl has right to wear scarf, AU tells Okla. school.(People & Events)
February 1, 2004... A Muslim student attending an Oklahoma public school has the right to wear a headscarf as dictated by her religious beliefs, Americans United has told school officials. Officials with the Muskogee Public School District have twice...

Bush brief in pledge case says public schools can teach about God.(People & Events)
February 1, 2004... The Bush administration has urged the Supreme Court to uphold the use of the phrase "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance, arguing that public schools have a right to teach students about God. In a legal brief filed before the high court,...

Conservative leaders seek divorce from pro-marriage group.(People & Events)
February 1, 2004... Some conservative leaders are cutting ties to a national organization formed to oppose gay marriage, asserting that the group has connections to a radical Islamic movement. Politically conservative Rabbi Marc Gellman resigned from the...

Americans United seeks information about new Fla. 'faith-based' prison.(People & Events)
February 1, 2004... Attorneys with Americans United have filed a freedom-of-information request with the Florida Department of Corrections to learn more about the state's new "faith-based" prison. At the behest of Florida Guy. Jeb Bush, Lawtey Correctional...

Fla. gov. should remove intolerant minister from judicial board, says AU.(People & Events)
February 1, 2004... A member of a Florida commission that helps select state court judges has inappropriately asked nominees about their religious beliefs and should be removed from office, Americans United charged last month. The Miami Daily Business Review...

Sunday liquor sales become legal in Massachusetts.(AU Bulletin)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Massachusetts lawmakers have dumped a centuries-old policy of prohibiting statewide alcohol sales on Sunday. The ban on the sale of alcoholic beverages was a relic of the state's Puritan past. The new statewide policy, which lawmakers...

Ga. voters oppose more aid to religion, poll finds.(AU Bulletin)
February 1, 2004... A proposal to water down the church-state separation provisions of the Georgia state constitution is drawing a cool response from citizens, according to a recent poll. Last fall, Gov. Sonny Perdue (R) said he would ask lawmakers to approve...

Calif. Bible initiative targets public schools.(AU Bulletin)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... A California attorney is seeking a ballot initiative that would require the state to issue Bibles to all public school students. Matt McLaughlin, a Huntington Beach lawyer, told the Contra Costa Times that Bible study would enhance...

Afghan constitution enshrines Islam as state faith.(Around The World)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... A national assembly in Afghanistan has approved a constitution that includes a provision recognizing Islam as the nation's religion. The Los Angeles Times reported that the constitution, approved Jan. 4, includes an amendment declaring that...

Bigotry in the White House.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
February 1, 2004... I recently got my January issue of Church & State and was left absolutely fuming over the remarks made by James Towey about Pagan charity groups ("Faith Czar's Comments About 'Fringe Groups' Draws AU Criticism," January 2004 Church & State)....

Towey needs education--quick!(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
February 1, 2004... As a Pagan, I'm extremely disappointed that the guy running the faith-based program not only is unaware of Pagan charities like the Pagan Pride food donations (thousands of pounds of food donated nationwide in 2003) and Hearthfire Guild, but...

Many American Indians are Pagans, too!(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
February 1, 2004... Within the boundaries of the United States, several hundred American Indian tribes remain. Although many of our people have assimilated and are now Christians, within every tribe there is a core group of people who prefer the old ways and...

Swampland for Roy Moore.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
February 1, 2004... If Alabama Judge Roy Moore believes that a "Christian" government would not infringe on the rights of non-Christians ("Onward, Christian Soldiers," January 2004 Church & State), then I have a parcel of Florida swampland to sell him. Given...

God and campaign 2004! Looking at the race that is set before us.(Perspective)
February 1, 2004... Religion and politics, the two topics most people's parents said not to discuss in polite company, are roaring conjoined into the 2004 presidential race. This continues the disturbing trend seen in 2000 when George Bush opined that Jesus was...