Church & State articles from November 2006

Church & State archives from November 2006

House blocks legal fees in church-state cases.(IN THE CAPITAL)
November 1, 2006... In an apparent election-year move to please the Religious Right, the U.S. House of Representatives has passed a bill designed to discourage citizens from challenging government-sponsored religious activities. In late September, on a...

Supreme Court skips dispute over Islam instruction.(IN THE CAPITAL)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to review a controversy involving a California public school district's history lesson on Islam. At the start of its new term in early October, the high court turned away an appeal of a 9th U.S. Circuit...

Kansas senator blocks judge nominee after gay ceremony.(IN THE CAPITAL)(Sam Brownback)(Janet T. Neff)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) is holding up the nomination of a federal judge from Michigan after learning that she has participated in a same-sex commitment ceremony. In October, the Religion News Service (RNS) reported that Brownback,...

Georgia state affiliate leaves Christian Coalition.(AROUND THE STATES)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... The once-mighty Christian Coalition continued its unraveling with yet another state affiliate's departure this fall. In late September, the Christian Coalition of Georgia severed its ties with the national group, saying in a statement that...

Inside the Values Voter Summit: a disturbing drama of dogma, deception and demonization at the religious right's Washington conference.(Cover story)
November 1, 2006... Long-time right-wing activist Connie Marshner has an interesting approach to organizing a church on behalf of a political candidate: It's OK to lie if you have to. Speaking at a workshop during the Religious Right's "2006 Values Voter...

Toxic talk: speakers at Religious Right's 'Values Voter Summit' spew radical rhetoric.
November 1, 2006... More violence will help in Iraq, global warming is a crock and Saddam Hussein was involved in the 9/11 attacks. Voicing off-the-wall opinions like this might win you at the very least some strange looks and at the worst a heated argument....

Is the Antichrist gay? Stretching scripture at the 'Values Voter Summit'.
November 1, 2006... According to the New Testament Book of John, the Antichrist is the ultimate foe of God. tie is referred to as a liar and a deceiver who denies Christ and all of his works. Although the Bible actually has little to say about the Antichrist...

Special delivery: Americans United letter on church electioneering gets no stamp of approval from religious right.(James Dobson, Focus on the Family )
November 1, 2006... Focus on the Family power-broker James Dobson was ready to sit out this year's election battles. Dissatisfied with the slow pace of social-issues legislation in GOP-dominated Washington, he was angry at the Republican politicians he helped put...

Picture perfect: W. Va. school right to settle lawsuit.(EDITORIALS)(Americans United and American Civil Liberties Union)
November 1, 2006... Education officials at Bridgeport High School in West Virginia did the right thing in voting to settle a lawsuit brought by Americans United and the ACLU of West Virginia over a portrait of Jesus that had been hanging in a school hallway. ...

Values vacuum: Summit showcases intolerance of religious right.(Editorial)
November 1, 2006... In late September, affiliates of the Family Research Council, Focus on the Family and other Religious Right groups held a three-day confab in Washington, D.C., attended by about 1,700 people. The gathering was a good reminder of the danger...

Officials at W. Va. school agree to settle Jesus portrait lawsuit.(Harrison County School Board, West Virginia)
November 1, 2006... Officials at a West Virginia high school have agreed to settle a lawsuit challenging the display of a portrait of Jesus in a school hallway. The Harrison County School Board voted 4-1 Oct. 6 to settle the legal action, brought on behalf of...

'Faith-based' office pushed GOP candidates, former staffer says.(White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives )
November 1, 2006... A new book by a highly placed former staffer in the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives details a series of stunning revelations of how the much-ballyhooed "faith-based" initiative was cynically manipulated by Republican...

Dobson & Co. are 'nasty bullies,' says former house GOP leader.(PEOPLE & EVENTS)
November 1, 2006... Focus on the Family President James Dobson and his Religious Right political allies took it on the chin from all unexpected source recently: Former House Majority Leader Dick Armey. Armey, a Texas Republican, was a predictable vote for...

Church and state mingle, archbishop says at Washington Red Mass.(PEOPLE & EVENTS)(Donald W. Wuerl)
November 1, 2006... Religion has been the guiding force of American life and must be nurtured in society and government, Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl of Washington, D.C., told four Supreme Court justices and other attendees at the annual "Red Mass" Oct. 1. ...

IRS revokes tax status of far-right anti-abortion group.(PEOPLE & EVENTS)(Internal Revenue Service)(Operation Rescue West)
November 1, 2006... The Internal Revenue Service in September revoked the tax-exempt status of Operation Rescue West, an anti-abortion group that two years ago announced it would work to block the election of U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) to the presidency. ...

Senate derails chaplaincy gambit favored by Religious Right groups.(PEOPLE & EVENTS)(Walter B. Jones)
November 1, 2006... An effort by Religious Right groups to pass legislation guaranteeing military chaplains the right to pray in a sectarian manner failed in late September when the Senate refused to accept the measure. Social conservatives in the House of...

Bush siphoned tax aid to 'faith-based' allies in overseas grants.(George W. Bush)
November 1, 2006... Evidence has come to light that the Bush administration has directed hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to "faith-based" groups working overseas that toe the administration's line on controversial social issues. The Boston Globe last...

Sign the petition!: first freedom first is off to great start.
November 1, 2006... Don't forget, Americans United is sponsoring an exciting new project called First Freedom First. This petition campaign seeks to rally Americans around a series of core freedoms tied to church-state separation. We're hoping to collect as many...

Religious Right groups file briefs to defend Colson prison program.
November 1, 2006... A slew of Religious Right organizations have filed legal briefs opposing Americans United's position in an Iowa case challenging taxpayer funding of a prison program anchored in evangelical Christianity. A federal court in Iowa ruled in...

The search is on: AU is looking for long-time members.
November 1, 2006... 2007 marks the 60th anniversary of the founding of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. As part of the festivities, AU is interested in hearing from long-time members. And when we say long-time, we mean long. Have you been...

Barry Lynn's book gets great reviews, now in bookstores.(Piety & Politics: The Right-Wing Assault on Religious Freedom)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... The reviews are in, and Americans United Executive Director Barry W. Lynn's new book, Piety & Politics: The Right-Wing Assault on Religious Freedom, is a hit! Kirkus Reviews calls it "essential reading." Booklist observes, "Whatever...

Goodbye Christendom--and good riddance!: a pastor's reflection on church and state.(Column)
November 1, 2006... Christendom" is a term often used to talk about the Christian world generally. Lately, however, the word is being used by many scholars and analysts to refer to something more specific. Nowadays, "Christendom" more often means the...

Daughter can learn about polygamy, Pa. court rules.(Pennsylvania)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Pennsylvania's top court has ruled that a father has a First Amendment fight to discuss polygamy with his daughter. The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled 5-1 on Sept. 27 that state officials may not interfere with Stanley M. Shepp's...

Scholar's report finds Texas Bible classes bogus.(Texas Freedom Network)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Many Texas public schools are sponsoring Bible courses that wind up being tools to proselytize, a recent study finds. The Texas Freedom Network (TFN) studied more than 1,000 public school districts in the Lone Star State and found that 33...

Greece bars student confessions at school.(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Public schools in Greece have dumped the practice of permitting the nation's Orthodox Church to hear the confessions of students on school grounds. The Orthodox Church, which is officially recognized by Greece, has railed against the...

Correction.(Correction notice)
November 1, 2006... The "Perspective" column in October's Church & State contained incorrect information about two AU chapters. The new president of the San Fernando Valley Chapter is Jodell Haws. Jeannie Parent is president of the Kern County Chapter.

'The enemy' within: my strange trek to the Values Voter Summit.(Conference news)
November 1, 2006... I had a pang of nostalgia as I walked into the hotel hosting the recent "Values Voter Summit" in Washington and picked up my official delegate credentials at the registration booth. This conference was sponsored primarily by Tony Perkins'...