Church & State articles from July 2003

Church & State archives from July 2003

State attorneys general seek pledge review. (In The Capital).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Attorneys general from all 50 states are urging the U.S. Supreme Court to review a federal appeals court decision that found the Pledge of Allegiance to be unconstitutional when recited in public schools. Last year, the 9th U.S. Circuit...

Washington mayor's 'faith-based' adviser ousted. (In The Capital).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... The "religious affairs" adviser of Washington, D.C.'s mayor abruptly left the post in late May under a cloud of impropriety. The Rev. Carlton N. Pressley resigned after allegations were reported in The Washington Post that he had urged a...

Prayers dropped from S.C. High School graduation. (Around The States).
July 1, 2003... A South Carolina high school dropped a prayer from its graduation ceremony after Americans United for Separation of Church and State complained about the constitutionality of the practice. Northwestern High School in Rock Hill, S.C., had a...

Officials move polling place from Massachusetts church. (Around The States).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... A lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a polling site located in a church was settled in mid-May after city officials agreed to move the site to a secular setting. Framingham, Mass., officials agreed to move one of the precinct's...

Vouchers reloaded: Washington state scholarship case at Supreme Court could rewrite church-state law in America. (Cover Story).
July 1, 2003... College freshman Joshua Davey decided in 1999 that he wanted to study for the ministry and become a pastoral counselor--and that Washington state taxpayers should help him meet that religious goal. State officials had other ideas. Although...

Historic battle: Bush administration approves public funds for repair of historic churches, as faith-based initiative attempts 'revolutionary march' through government.
July 1, 2003... Christ Episcopal Church in Boston, Mass., has a major new contributor in its flock--Uncle Sam. In May, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton dropped by to announce a federal grant of $317,000 for building repair and renovation. The...

Voucher violation: Americans United, allies file lawsuit A against Colorado school voucher scheme.
July 1, 2003... The Rev. Tamara Kwanzaa is expecting a big jump in enrollment this fall at Love Christian Fellowship School in northeast Denver. Kwanzaa, who serves as principal of the 75-student school, told National Public Radio that she expects twice as...

'Historic' churches and taxpayer dollars: sound the alarm! (Editorial).
July 1, 2003... President George W. Bush recently announced that he is for separation of church and state--in Iraq. The new Iraqi government, he told an NBC interviewer a few weeks ago, will not be a theocracy. It's too bad we can't say the same thing for...

'Faith-based' services not always better, says new study. (People & Events).
July 1, 2003... Despite the rhetoric from the Bush administration, "faith-based" social services are not always more effective than secular ones, a new study indicates. Researchers at Indiana University compared government-funded job-training and...

AU urges Senate to reject Bill Pryor for appeals court. (People & Events).
July 1, 2003... Americans United and other public interest groups joined forces last month to urge the Senate to reject the nomination of Alabama Attorney General William Pryor to a seat on the federal appeals court. Pryor was recently chosen for a slot on...

Rep. Jones resurrects legislation to allow pulpit politicking. (People & Events).
July 1, 2003... Rep. Walter B. Jones (R-N.C.) has retooled his church electioneering bill and reintroduced it in the House of Representatives. Jones' new bill, the Houses of Worship Free Speech Restoration Act (H.R. 235), is more narrowly tailored than his...

Christian Coalition, Priests for Life plan church-based voter drive. (People & Events).
July 1, 2003... The Christian Coalition has joined forces with two anti-abortion groups in an effort to build a new church-based political machine and possibly boost the sagging fortunes of the Pat Robertson-founded political unit, Americans United charged...

Saudi executioner enforces 'God's law' with a sharp sword. (People & Events).
July 1, 2003... Saudi Arabia's top executioner says he loves his work and considers himself an agent of "God's law." In a rare interview with the news media, executioner Muhammad Saad Al-Beshi explained that he is sometimes called upon daily to administer...

Appellate judges seem skeptical of arguments for Ten Commandments. (People & Events).
July 1, 2003... Americans United Legal Director Ayesha N. Khan told a federal appeals court June 4 that Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore has no constitutional authority to display the Ten Commandments at the Judicial Building in Montgomery. The 40-minute...

Mo. public school agrees to religious neutrality in history course. (People & Events).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Public schools in Independence, Mo., will remain neutral on religious matters and take steps to ensure that religion is not advanced in the classroom under the terms of a legal settlement agreement reached June 12. The settlement ends a...

Dispute over sectarian city council prayers sparks debate in Calif. (People & Events).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Communities in California are wrestling with the issue of sectarian prayers before governmental meetings in the wake of a court ruling banning such invocations. The controversy began in 1999 when the late Irv Rubin, chairman of the Jewish...

Islamic school texts promote hatred, charges newspaper. (People & Events).
July 1, 2003... New York taxpayers could find themselves supporting religious and ethnic hatred taught in private Islamic schools, if a voucher plan is ever adopted in that state. A recent survey of six textbooks used in Islamic academies in New York City...

Of Jefferson, Franklin and the Republic--if we can keep it. (Viewpoint).
July 1, 2003... The weather in heaven is always beautiful, for that is the nature of the place. Even so, the two gentlemen in fitted coats and knee breeches take care to appreciate it properly before settling themselves at the very edge. It is their custom to...

Court upholds religious advertising in Arizona public school. (AU Bulletin).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... A federal appeals court ruled in May that an Arizona public school district must allow the advertisement of a Christian camp on school grounds since the district also permits secular groups to promote their programs. The American Center...

La. tax exemptions for churches withstand court scrutiny. (AU Bulletin).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... A federal appeals court refused to rule on the constitutionality of Louisiana tax exemptions for religious groups saying that the suit challenging the tax breaks belonged in state court. The ACLU of Louisiana brought suit in 2000 against...

Florida Muslim loses lawsuit over removing veil. (AU Bulletin).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... A Florida judge ruled in early June that a Muslim woman's religious liberties are not violated by the state's demand that her driver's license include a photo without her religiously mandated veil. In early 2001, Saltaana Freeman obtained...

Atheist pastor may keep state job in Denmark. (Around The World).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... A Danish pastor sparked an uproar recently when he announced that he does not believe in God, but he still may be able to keep his state-paid job. The Rev. Thorkild Grosboel, a Lutheran minister, reportedly said, "There is no heavenly God,...

My dinner with Dr. Friedman. (Letters).(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... Your editorial on Milton Friedman ("Voucher Venom: Don't Buy Snake Oil from Doctor Friedman," May Church & State) brought back memories. I was an undergraduate at the University of Chicago in the mid 1960s. As a freshman, I took on, the task of...

Equal treatment for religion? (Letters).(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... Jim Towey, director of the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, was quoted recently as having said that the decision to give a federal grant to Old North Church is part of a presidential campaign "to remove barriers that have...

Thou shalt not distort history. (Letters).(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... I was just reading about the Ten Commandments in my new issue of Church & State ("U.S. Law Not Based On Ten Commandments, Law Profs Tell Court," June People & Events). It totally confuses me when the Religious Right people say our laws are...

An answer to prayer. (Letters).(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... Concerning your recent article about states and municipalities wrangling over the contents of invocational prayers ("Texas Lawmakers Wrangle Over Content Of Legislative Prayers," People & Events, March Church & State), I should like to offer...

Separation: keystone of freedom. (Letters).(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... I'm proud to say that Americans United is the first organization I have ever joined. It's comforting to know that growing numbers of Americans are coming to understand that separation of church and state is the irrefutable keystone of our...

Historic mistake: Old North Church and our tax dollars. (Perspective).
July 1, 2003... Years ago when I was younger and had fewer gray hairs, I taught school in Boston. One of my courses examined Boston's history. On Wednesday afternoons, I'd take the students on a tour of interesting sites. I was always surprised that many...