Church & State articles from October 2004

Church & State archives from October 2004

High Court rejects request for review of pledge case.(In The Capital)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... The U.S Supreme Court in late August refused to reconsider its decision in the Pledge of Allegiance case. In a ruling handed down in early summer, the high court dismissed on technical grounds a church-state challenge to the use of "under...

Americans oppose pulpit politicking, poll finds.(In The Capital)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... A nationwide poll released in August shows strong opposition to church-based electioneering. The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life poll revealed that 65 percent of Americans oppose church endorsement of political candidates, 69 percent...

Bible lawsuit sparks death threats against Texas attorney.(Around The States)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... A 61-year-old Houston lawyer has received death threats in connection with her legal challenge to a religious display at a county courthouse. Kay Staley filed a lawsuit against Harris County last year over a monument that sits outside the...

Teacher meeting prayers violate constitution, court holds.(Around The States)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... Prayers at mandatory public school staff meetings in Arkansas violate the First Amendment principle of church-state separation, a federal appeals court has ruled. On Aug. 24, the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found in favor of Steve...

Polygamy not protected by constitution, Utah court rules.(Around The States)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... The Utah Supreme Court has ruled that the state's law banning polygamy does not violate a practicing polygamist's First Amendment religious liberty. Tom Green, 55, was convicted in 2001 of violating the state law against polygamy but...

Culture war casualties: Republicans, Democrats target churches for Partisan politics, as election '04 nears the end.
October 1, 2004... Sen. Sam Brownback was fired up. Addressing a receptive crowd of Religious Right activists during the Republican Party's convention in New York City, the Kansas Republican made it clear that even though the public face of the meeting was...

Politics in the pulpit: what would Jefferson do?
October 1, 2004... Pulpit-based politicking is nothing new in the United States--and neither is controversy over it. Thomas Jefferson commented on the phenomenon 189 years ago. Not surprisingly, Jefferson, always a strong advocate of church-state separation,...

Behind closed doors: who is the council for national policy and what are they up to? And why don't they want you to know?(Cover Story)
October 1, 2004... When a top U.S. senator receives a major award from a national advocacy organization, it's standard procedure for both the politician and the group to eagerly tell as many people about it as possible. Press releases spew from fax machines...

Legacy of liberty: revolutionary-era Pastor John Leland fought to protect religion from government interference.
October 1, 2004... The Rev. John Leland has some advice for American voters: When you go to the polls, avoid candidates who wear their personal piety on their sleeves. "Guard against those men who make a great noise about religion in choosing...

Dobson's crusade: ushering in an officially 'Christian America'.(Editorial)(Editorial)
October 1, 2004... James Dobson has big plans for America. Dobson, the founder of the Religious Right powerhouse Focus on the Family, has been traveling the nation, speaking at rallies ostensibly to drum up support for a Federal Marriage Amendment. ...

Report says 'faith-based' approach spreading through U.S. government.(People & Events)
October 1, 2004... Congress' reluctance to pass President George W. Bush's "faith-based" initiative has not stopped the policy shift, and government support for religiously run social services continues to spread, a new report indicates. Americans United...

Florida appeals court rules voucher plan violates state constitution.(People & Events)
October 1, 2004... Florida's school-voucher program aids religion in violation of the state constitution, an appeals court has ruled. In an Aug. 16 ruling in a case brought by Americans United for Separation of Church and State and its allies, Florida's 1st...

Dobson blasts separation during N.C. rally for marriage amendment.(People & Events)
October 1, 2004... Religious Right leader James C. Dobson bashed church-state separation and the federal judges who have upheld it during a rally in North Carolina last month. The event was sponsored by Dobson's new political outfit, Focus on the Family...

Jerry Falwell opens law school to train 'radical' attorneys.(People & Events)
October 1, 2004... The Rev. Jerry Falwell has opened a fundamentalist Christian law school with high hopes--training a crop of attorneys who will someday remake the nation in the Religious Right's image. The school, which will be unaccredited for at least...

Prominent Texas pastor expresses concern about 'faith-based' initiative.(People & Events)
October 1, 2004... One of the nation's most prominent African-American pastors has expressed concerns over one of the president's signature policy efforts: the "faith-based" Initiative. Bishop T.D. Jakes of the Potter's House Church says his Dallas...

More Catholic bishops deny communion to pro-choice politicians.(People & Events)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... Bishops of three Roman Catholic dioceses banded together in early August to announce they would deny communion to politicians who support reproductive rights. The announcement of the bishops of the Atlanta, Charleston, S.C. and Charlotte,...

AU urges defense dept. to send religious right general Boykin packing.(People & Events)
October 1, 2004... An Army general who gave speeches at religious events describing the U.S. war on terrorism as a Christian battle against Satan is likely to escape with a slap on the wrist--but he should be removed from duty, says Americans United. In...

Extreme makeover: Calif. theocrat seeks kinder, gentler image.(People & Events)
October 1, 2004... Wealthy Religious Right activist Howard F. Ahmanson Jr. is trying to revamp his image after years of pouring money into one of the most extreme Religious Right groups in the nation. Ahmanson for many years was a chief financial backer of...

AU guardians forum features Nadine Strossen, Bill Press, Barry Lynn.(People & Events)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... Americans United will hold a special forum in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, Nov. 9, to assess the state of church-state separation in America. The event is AU's Second Annual Guardians Forum. It will feature a conversation between AU Executive...

Teachers can run religious clubs after school, court says.(Around The States)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... Public schools teachers have the right to run student religious clubs on site immediately after the school day ends, a federal appeals court has ruled. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Sept. 3 that education officials in Sioux...

R.I. court upholds Catholic school hair policy.(Around The States)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... The Rhode Island Supreme Court has rejected a student's challenge to a Roman Catholic school's policy regulating hairstyles. On July 15, the justices held in Gorman v. St. Raphael Academy that it is not "within the province of the court to...

French ban on student Islamic garb takes effect.(Around The World)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... A controversial French law banning Islamic scarves in the nation's public schools took effect peacefully in early September, according to press reports. The law, which prohibits the wearing of Muslim head coverings as well as Jewish...

Serbian leader overturns ban on evolution in public schools.(Around The World)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... A decision by Serbia's education minister to yank evolution from the public schools was quickly reversed by the prime minister. In early September, Education Minister Ljiljana Colic said her Christian beliefs had prompted her order banning...

On the religion beat in the news media: happy trails, Dave!(Perspective)(Editorial)
October 1, 2004... The first time my parents ever saw my name in print after I came to Washington, D.C., in 1974 was in a front-page story in the Bethlehem (Pa.) Globe Times, their local evening news paper. It was a criticism of the recently enacted "clemency...