Items included for this subject area come from a variety of sources. The perspectives conveyed may or may not express a Lutheran ethos. They can serve our instruction as discussion-starters, examples (positive and negative), and illustrations of intersections between God’s two kingdoms, intersections sometimes characterized by tension, sometimes by congruence. Inclusion does not imply endorsement.
NY Appeals Court Upholds Penalty On Wedding Venue That Refused To Host Same-Sex Ceremony: In Matter of Gifford v. McCarthy, (NY App. Div., Jan. 14, 2016), a New York state intermediate appellate court upheld a decision by the State Division of Human Rights imposing compensatory damages of $3000 and a civil fine of $10,000 on a […]
2015 was ‘worst year’ for Christian persecution, says Open Doors: The nonprofit organization Open Doors has focused on concern for persecuted Christians since 1955. With North Korea leading the way and Islamic extremism rapidly expanding, 2015 was the “worst year in modern history for Christian persecution.’” Iraq is in second place on Open Doors‘ 2016 World Watch […]
States plan renewed debate on LGBT rights, religious freedom: With same-sex marriage now legal nationwide, lawmakers in numerous states are preparing for a new round of battles in 2016 over whether to grant discrimination protections to LGBT people or religious exemptions to nonprofits and businesses that object to gay marriage.
Chance to get ID cards draws hundreds to Winston-Salem event: The Forsyth County, NC, Sheriff’s Office, Winston-Salem Police Department and Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center’s Division of Faith and Health Ministries have asked the local social ministry group, FaithAction,to provide an ID card service in Winston-Salem. “This is a local answer to a national issue — a broken […]
Pharmacists to Supreme Court: Protect our religious conscience: A family-owned pharmacy and two female pharmacists asked the U.S. Supreme Court today to stop a new Washington State law that would force them to sell abortion-inducing drugs in violation of their religious beliefs.
Religious Health Care Ministries Show Growth: The Wall Street Journal reports that the number of participants in religious health-sharing arrangements has grown from 200,000 to 500,000 since 2010 and after enactment of the ACA. According to the report, gov’t officials are concerned both about the risk to participants from the unregulated operation of the arrangements, and about their impact […]
From Religion Clause: “My nomination for [the sleeper issue to emerge] in 2016 is the question of whether the retirement plans of many religiously-affiliated healthcare organizations will, as the 3rd Circuit recently held, be found not to qualify for the ‘church plan’ exemption from ERISA on which they have relied. Many of these plans will be […]
Boston hospital expels doctor over LGBT views: After more than 10 years of tension and conflict over his hospital’s institutional endorsement of LGBT activities, urologist Paul Church lost his final appeal to the Board of Directors of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) to reconsider the hospital’s decision to expel him and terminate his medical […]
The ADF has filed a petition with the U.S. Supreme Court behalf of a Trinity Lutheran Church’s Child Learning Center, Columbia, MO, which was denied access to a state program that provides recycled tires to surface children’s playgrounds. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit upheld a federal court’s decision that ruled the state was justified in […]
Officials closed all schools in Augusta County, VA, as a safety precaution when parents were distressed by a world geography assignment from the schools’ standard textbook in world religions. The assignment:”Here is the shahada, the Islamic statement of faith, written in Arabic. In the space below, try copying it by hand. This should give you […]
