Parents, pastors and defenders of public education filed suit against state education officials in Oklahoma District Court July 31, seeking to reverse approval of St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School as the nation’s first religious charter school. Plaintiffs want…
Four groups warn Texas schools against new chaplaincy scheme
Four church-state separationist groups have sent a letter to Texas school superintendents and school boards warning them a law enacted by the Texas Legislature this year is unconstitutional and they should not take the bait. Not said explicitly in the…
Americans United takes a different view on today’s Supreme Court hearing about religious accommodation by employers
Americans United for Separation of Church and State has taken a different approach to a U.S. Supreme Court hearing today than its frequent ally, Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty. In the case of Groff v. DeJoy, BJC joined the…
Public funding for private Christian schools gains ground in some states but faces setbacks in Oklahoma and Texas and in U.S. House
The quest to direct public funds to sectarian schools is meeting with mixed results this legislative season, with what would have been the nation’s first religious charter school being denied in Oklahoma, a deeply religious and conservative state. While Florida…
New York City mayor dismisses need for separation of church and state
New York City Mayor Eric Adams denied the need for separation of church and state in a speech at an interfaith breakfast Feb. 28. “Don’t tell me about no separation of church and state,” he said. “State is the body….
Appeals court allows priest’s defamation case to proceed against Russian Orthodox Church
Faith groups cannot claim religious belief and doctrine as exemptions from lawsuits that include issues of secular law, a federal court has ruled in the case of an Orthodox priest who sued church officials for defamation. The Aug. 17 opinion…
It’s still ‘Christians only’ at this Tennessee Methodist adoption agency
A Methodist foster care and adoption agency that receives government funding may continue to serve “Christians only” because the Jewish couple who challenged the agency were found by a Tennessee court not to have legal standing. The religious discrimination at…
Americans United says Florida is inserting white Christian nationalism in the classroom
Americans United for Separation of Church and State is investigating allegations that the state of Florida is promoting white Christian nationalism through new public school curriculum standards. Concerns stem from a new Civics Literacy Excellence Initiative promoted by Gov. Ron…
Catholic bishops drop opposition to lesbian becoming a foster parent
A federal lawsuit alleging discrimination in a foster parent program has been resolved, with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops dropping its opposition to a lesbian caring for refugee children. Kelly Easter was raised in a Southern Baptist home where…