Church & State articles from September 2005

Church & State archives from September 2005

'Faith-based' programs get little oversight, says study.(IN THE CAPITAL)
September 1, 2005... The Bush administration's aggressive push for funding of "faith-based" groups is significantly altering the way states and localities are offering social services, a study from the Urban Institute finds. In late July, the nonpartisan think...

Most bishops wouldn't deny communion, says cardinal.(IN THE CAPITAL)(Theodore McCarrick)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... A top Roman Catholic official has suggested that most American bishops would not deny communion to politicians who advocate policies not supported by the church. Cardinal Theodore McCarrick of Washington, D.C., said in early July that "a...

Congress earmarks money for Calif. mission repair.(IN THE CAPITAL)(San Miguel Mission receives $300,000 grant for repair)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... California lawmakers in Congress forced into an expansive spending bill thousands of dollars for repair of one of the state's Roman Catholic missions. Senators Diane Feinstein (D) and Barbara Boxer (D) announced in late July that they had...

Ohio legislature expands school voucher program.(AROUND THE STATES)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Ohio lawmakers approved another school voucher program this summer, significantly expanding on the 10-year-old program in Cleveland. In late July, Education Week reported that Republican Gov. Bob Taft signed into law the Ohio Educational...

Behind the smile: Bush Supreme Court nominee John Roberts has an alarming record on church and state and should not be confirmed, says Americans United.(Cover Story)
September 1, 2005... Tony Perkins could barely contain is glee when he learned that President George W. Bush had nominated John G. Roberts Jr. for a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court. "The president promised us a judge along the lines of [Antonin] Scalia and...

Prayer offensive? Pat Robertson seeks divine intervention in remaking Supreme Court, as religious right presses for Roberts confirmation.(John G. Roberts, Jr.)
September 1, 2005... TV preacher Pat Robertson is so determined to get John G. Roberts on the Supreme Court that he's calling for divine intervention. Throughout August, Robertson sponsored what he called "Operation Supreme Court Freedom," a prayer project...

Weird science: President Bush's support for teaching 'intelligent design' in public schools adds to growing controversy over science instruction in public schools.
September 1, 2005... President George W. Bush probably thought his recent remarks backing "intelligent design" in public schools were not controversial and would be forgotten the next day--but then a firestorm of sorts erupted. In an Aug. 1 interview with a...

Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts: why he should not be confirmed.(Editorial)
September 1, 2005... John G. Roberts Jr. is the wrong judge to replace Sandra Day O'Connor on the U.S. Supreme Court. Some might argue that conclusion is premature. Roberts has been a federal appeals court judge for less than two years While on the bench, he...

Ira Gissen: friend of religious freedom.(Brief Article)(Editorial)(Obituary)
September 1, 2005... The cause of separation of church and state lost a champion July 30 with the death of Ira Gissen. Ira, 77, was the type of all-too-often unsung local activist who keeps Americans United running. A former director of the Anti-Defamation...

Frist frosts religious right allies with stem-cell flip-flop.(PEOPLE & EVENTS)
September 1, 2005... Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) has enjoyed a warm relationship with Religious Right groups like the Family Research Council in the past--but that came to screeching halt July 29 when Frist announced he is changing sides on the...

'Faith Czar' Jim Towey denies political agenda, but facts show otherwise.(PEOPLE & EVENTS)
September 1, 2005... White House "Faith Czar" James Towey insisted recently that there is no partisan political agenda behind the "faith-based" initiative, but critics say the facts suggest otherwise. In a late-July meeting with African-American pastors at the...

AU warns against military support for Franklin Graham event.(Americans United for Separation of Church and State)
September 1, 2005... Americans United for Separation of Church and State has warned U.S. military officials not to promote a Christian evangelistic rally for military personnel sponsored by Billy Graham's ministry. Americans United took action in early August...

Flag desecration amendment is just the beginning, backer tells newspaper.(PEOPLE & EVENTS)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... An activist leading the charge for a constitutional amendment barring flag desecration has admitted that the proposal will be just the first of several changes to the Bill of Rights. In a July 18 letter to a columnist for the conservative...

TV preacher Falwell's 'vote Christian' campaign sparks controversy.(Jerry Falwell)
September 1, 2005... A new "vote Christian" fund-raising campaign by the Rev. Jerry Falwell has sparked controversy. Falwell announced the campaign in a fund-raising letter that has been circulating nationwide since the spring. The four-page letter, which...

FCC hires Religious Right activist to serve as 'decency advisor'.(PEOPLE & EVENTS)
September 1, 2005... A Religious Right activist may soon hold sway over what Americans see on network and cable television. Penny Nance has been hired by the Federal Communications Commission's Office of Strategic Planning and Policy Analysis to help formulate...

Utah professor warns lawmakers not to mix church and state.(PEOPLE & EVENTS)
September 1, 2005... A Utah lawmaker's hearing designed to bash the separation of church and state went awry in July when the main witness turned out to be a supporter of Thomas Jefferson's church-state wall. Sen. Parley Hellewell, a Republican from Orem,...

Va. attorney general attacks separation in memo on baccalaureates.(Judith W. Jagdmann)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... American law does not require a separation of church and state, says the attorney general of Virginia. The issue came up in July, when a state lawmaker, Delegate L. Scott Lingamfelter of Prince William County, learned that education...

Gingrich says nothing in constitution requires government to be secular.(Newt Gingrich)
September 1, 2005... The U.S. Constitution contains no references to God, Jesus Christ or Christianity, and its First Amendment bars any law "respecting an establishment of religion"--yet according to former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, the document is not secular....

N.C. lawsuit seeks to win approval for court oaths on Koran.(PEOPLE & EVENTS)
September 1, 2005... A recently filed lawsuit in North Carolina seeks to force state courts to expand the definition of "Holy Scriptures" to include the Koran and other religious texts. The state branch of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed the...

America is not a 'Christian nation,' says prominent Texas pastor.(PEOPLE & EVENTS)(T.D. Jakes)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... The United States is not an officially Christian nation and was not intended to be, Bishop T.D. Jakes said in August. Jakes, a prominent African-American pastor, heads The Potter's House, a large non-denominational church in Dallas with...

President Carter deplores 'melding of church and state'.(PEOPLE & EVENTS)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Former President Jimmy Carter, a devout Baptist and Sunday School teacher, still retains his lifelong support for separation of church and state. Carter took reporters' questions during the Baptist World Centenary Congress in Birmingham,...

Pledge recitations in Virginia schools upheld by court.(PEOPLE & EVENTS)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools has won approval from a federal appellate court. On Aug. 10, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against a Virginia parent who objected to the phrase "one nation under God"...

Tulsa Zoo retreats on planned creation exhibit.(AROUND THE STATES)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Officials in Tulsa, Okla., have backed off from plans to display a creationism exhibit at the city zoo. In early June at the behest of a local Religious Right activist, the Tulsa Park and Recreation Board voted to allow an exhibit at the...

'Holier Than Thou' statue passes court muster.(AROUND THE STATES)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... A state university art display, which included a statue some argued sent an anti-Catholic message, does not violate the First Amendment, a federal appeals court has ruled. Since the late 1990s, Washburn University's Campus Beautification...

Women, minorities worry about draft of Iraq charter.(AROUND THE WORLD)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... Concerns mounted throughout the summer that Islam will take a prominent place in Iraq's new constitution, threatening the rights of women and religious minorities. A 71-member committee working to prepare a constitution has sent...

Honduras upholds ban on clergy officeholders.(AROUND THE WORLD)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2005... A ban on clergy running for political offices has been upheld by the Supreme Court of Honduras. The ban, which dates back to 1830, was overturned by the country's Supreme Electoral Court in June, prompting 14 evangelical Christian...

The Air Force's religion problem.(LETTERS)(Letter to the Editor)
September 1, 2005... The article about the Air Force Academy ("Kingdom Of Heaven?," June Church & State) struck a nerve, as I was on the staff there some years ago. I am well aware of the fundamentalist hold on the U.S. Air Force. It is even more blatant now with...

The marines' religion problem.(LETTERS)(Letter to the Editor)
September 1, 2005... Your article about proselytizing at the Air Force Academy ("Kingdom Of Heaven?," June Church & State) reminded me of an experience I had in the Marine Corps. Shortly after I arrived on Okinawa to command the 7th Communications Battalion, I was...

Troubling academy report.(LETTERS)(Letter to the Editor)
September 1, 2005... I have just read Americans United's 14-page report on religious intolerance at the Air Force Academy ("Report of Americans United for Separation of Church and State on Religious Coercion and Endorsement of Religion at the United States Air...

America: no official religion.(LETTERS)(Letter to the Editor)
September 1, 2005... We Americans have always taken pride in saying that despite the fact that the majority of the populace speaks English yet it is not our official language. Also, it is a fact that the majority of Americans are of the Christian faith, but...

Evolution: and thereby hangs a tail ...(LETTERS)(Letter to the Editor)
September 1, 2005... So Kansas is staging the monkey trial all over again ("Darwin On Trial?," People & Events, June Church & State). Kansas needs to be informed that the facts that we humans have unneeded and unwanted body hair, are mammals and have tailbones...

Intelligent design?: check the evidence.(LETTERS)(Letter to the Editor)
September 1, 2005... Volcanic eruptions. Earthquakes. Tornadoes. Spurious wars that kill precious lives, wound brave bodies and souls and waste national treasure. Poverty and pestilence. Overpaid fraudulent CEOs. Once respected auditing firms cooking the books....

Honk if you support the separation of church and state.
September 1, 2005... Traveling down McGavock Pike in Nashville Aug. 14, I happened to spot a young woman standing across the street from the Two Rivers Baptist Church. She was holding a sign that read, "Honk If You Support the Separation of Church and State." I was...