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.
An applicant for an adjunct professor job claims in a lawsuit that a small private Christian liberal arts college discriminated against him by refusing to hire him because he’s Jewish. The suit says the college did not state in its job posting that being a Christian was required or that hiring would be predicated on practicing the […]
Do Christians And Muslims Worship The Same God? and Round-Table Discussion. These two audio clips follow up on the Wheaton College soc prof situation and to what extent Christians may identify with the convictions of other religions. The round-table discussion is 6 min. and can help students begin to make some distinctions that avoid the usual […]
In what may be the first in a series of test cases, a MA state judge has ruled that a Catholic school discriminated against a gay man when it rescinded a job offer after learning he was in a same-sex marriage. Judge Wilkins said Fontbonne Catholic School could claim a religious exemption to the state anti-discrimination law […]
The GetReligion monitor site on news coverage of religion offers this overview of the case and how it has been reported. School officials at Castle Elementary School in Johnson County, KY, have edited the Luke nativity text out of the script of “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” This case may be of interest for courses in theater, […]
Wheaton College Suspends Hijab-Wearing Professor After ‘Same God’ Comment: Wheaton college has put on administrative leave a professor wearing a hijab to support Muslims — for her explanation, not the act. These links take you to the initial coverage from Christianity Today here and also here, the Chicago Tribune, and the Religion News Service. Students and […]
The Tradition Project: Through the project, the Center for Law and Religion at St. John’s College aims to develop a broad and rich understanding of what tradition might continue to offer in cultivating virtuous, responsible, self-governing citizens. The project seeks to develop a broad understanding of what tradition might continue to offer for law, politics, and responsible […]
In this case study, a Lutheran husband and wife filed a lawsuit against the ELCA Eastern North Dakota Synod and Norman Evangelical Lutheran Church, claiming they were defamed and discriminated against and charging that their congregation treated them maliciously after they expressed their opposition to gay marriage. Students can assess the case for its 1 Cor 6 implications, […]
New Churches Draw Those Who Previously Didn’t Attend: America is launching new Protestant churches faster than it loses old ones, attracting many people who previously didn’t attend anywhere. And on average 42 percent of those worshiping at churches launched since 2008 previously never attended church or hadn’t attended in many years. Students can discuss and gain […]
Britain is no longer a Christian country and should stop acting as if it is, says judge: A major inquiry into the place of religion in modern society has published this position, provoking a furious backlash from ministers and the Church of England. A two-year commission involving leading religious leaders from all faiths, calls for public life in […]
New from Oxford University Press (280 pages): The New Atheist movement uses Darwinism to diminish the authority of religious institutions and belief systems and have embraced it as a metaphor for the gradual replacement of religious faith with secular reason. They have posed as harbingers of human progress, claiming the moral high ground, and rejecting with intolerance […]
