After nearly two years of largely favoring the free-exercise-of-religion claims brought by conservative Christians during the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States Supreme Court drew a firm line against such claims Dec. 13. Presented with a request for an emergency injunction…
Conservatives hoping for a 6-3 ruling in favor of taxpayer funding for sectarian schools
Comments by justices of the United State Supreme Court Dec. 8 indicate likely support for parents of Maine high school students who want to use government funding to send their children to sectarian schools. During oral arguments before the court…
It’s complicated: The backstory to Norma McCorvey and Roe v. Wade you probably don’t know
Joshua Prager has written what critics are calling the definitive book on Norma McCorvey, her family and the landmark Supreme Court decision she sparked that’s once again at the center of public attention, Roe v. Wade. The Family Roe: An…
There’s another big religious liberty case coming to the Supreme Court next week
With all eyes fixated on the United States Supreme Court this week hearing oral arguments in the Mississippi abortion case, scant attention has been paid to another potentially landmark case before the court next week on taxpayer funding for religious…
American support for death penalty remains low, as new debates arise in Oklahoma, Ohio and Texas
New research has documented Americans’ continued low support for capital punishment just as an anti-death penalty campaign ramps up in Ohio, conservatives in Oklahoma worry the practice could be endangered in their state, and the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to…
Will U.S. abortion law stay in limbo or is clarity coming — and when?
All eyes are on the United States Supreme Court, now that a date (Dec. 1) has been announced for oral arguments in what could be the most consequential abortion case in 50 years. But don’t expect to know the fate…
Supreme Court wants to hear Death Row inmate’s request to have his Baptist pastor comfort him at time of execution
The nation’s debate over capital punishment took an unexpected turn Sept. 8 when the United States Supreme Court intervened in a Texas case where the man sentenced to die wanted his pastor to hold his hand while he drew his…
Why all the fuss about the ‘Remain in Mexico’ immigration policy?
How would you feel if someone you trust harmed you as badly or worse than someone who beat you? On an international level, that’s what the U.S. immigration policy known as Migrant Protection Protocols — or MPP, or “Remain in…
Clergy, social workers, counselors fear they could be targeted by new Texas abortion law, which Supreme Court lets stand for now
After initially remaining silent as a highly restrictive new abortion law went into effect in Texas, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a late-night ruling, 5-4, Sept. 1 letting the controversial law stand — for now. Had Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg…
LA County and state of California pay settlement to pastor and church who denied reality of the pandemic
John MacArthur’s defiance of California’s public health restrictions to slow the spread of COVID-19 has netted the church $800,000 — not because MacArthur told the truth about the pandemic but because the U.S. Supreme Court eventually ruled that California couldn’t…
With refugee and immigrant ministries already on high alert, Supreme Court delivers an unwanted message
While the nation’s agencies serving refugees and immigrants are scrambling to welcome thousands of Afghan refugees, the U.S. Supreme Court dealt a blow to their advocacy on another front Aug. 24 by telling the Biden administration it must reinstate the…
Majority of Americans oppose overturning Roe v. Wade
The composition of the United States Supreme Court may have tilted on abortion, but the majority sentiment of the American public has not changed similarly. As with other key social issues most frequently espoused by religious conservatives — including immigration,LGBTQ…