Law and Religion Headlines
Wednesday, 27 March 2024
Malaysian convenience store owners charged over ‘Allah’ socks that angered Muslims
(Associated Press)
Woman who set fire to Montgomery church gets 8 years in prison
(Associated Press)
Nebraska governor signs bill protecting religious freedom, donor privacy
(Alliance Defending Freedom)
Idaho governor signs bill to protect faith-based adoption, foster care
(Alliance Defending Freedom)
California's removal of personal belief exemption from school immunization requirement is upheld
(Howard Friedman, Religion Clause)
Dispute over Satanic club in Tenn. school goes to court
(Americans United for Separation of Church and State)
Interference with contractual relationship created by Jewish marriage contract is not actionable
(Howard Friedman, Religion Clause)
Denial of religious exemption from vaccine mandate did not violate Title VII or Constitution
(Howard Friedman, Religion Clause)
Denial of church's property tax exemption did not violate RLUIPA
(Howard Friedman, Religion Clause)
Germany player Rüdiger takes legal steps after Ramadan greeting prompts accusation of terror support
(Associated Press)
Letter to Congress in support of resolution recognizing religious freedom as a fundamental human right, March 22, 2024
(United States Conference of Catholic Bishops)
President held a joint iftar with representatives of the Muslim community of Ukraine and awarded Ukrainian Muslim warriors
(Religious Information Service of Ukraine (RISU))
Kyrgyzstan: two Muslim men jailed for mosque closure protest
(Mushfig Bayram, Forum 18 News Service)
CEC contributes reflections on war in Ukraine
(Conference of European Churches)
Togo: Catholic bishops in Togo urge nation's president to postpone new Constitution
(Guy Aimé Eblotié, La Croix International)
U.S. funding bill mixed bag on pro-life, biblical gender, religious liberty
(Diana Chandler, Baptist Press)
Humanitarian needs and priorities: Debates and dilemmas
(Katherine Marshall, G20 Interfaith Forum Blog)
Italian school closes to ‘celebrate’ Ramadan, while another prevents Easter blessing
(Catholic Herald)
When parties agree to religious arbitration, arbitrator's religious decision is enforceable
(Eugene Volokh, Reason)
Indonesia: Communion of Churches in Indonesia condemns torture of civilians in Papua
(World Council of Churches)
Wa Baile v Switzerland: An implicit acknowledgment of racial profiling as structural discrimination
(Nozizwe Dube, Strasbourg Observers)
Sudan: SAF-affiliated Islamist militia detonates explosives inside mosque
(CSW: Everyone Free to Believe)
Christians: Persecution (Volume 837: debated on Monday 25 March 2024)
(UK Parliament)
Catholic group calls on UK’s COVID-19 inquiry to look at impact on faith groups
(Charles Collins, Crux: Taking the Catholic Pulse)
A new hate-crime law in Scotland causes widespread concern
(The Economist)
Family Mediators and Family Mediation: When Norms Collide
(Samia Bano and Lisa Webley, Oxford Journal of Law and Religion)
Criminal damage and conscience: AG’s Reference No.1
(Frank Cranmer, Law & Religion UK)
Australia: Faith groups warn Albanese a deal with Greens on religious discrimination would be a 'betrayal'
(Stephanie Borys, ABC News Australia)
Gambia: Religious intolerance: Recipe for instability
(D M. Badjie, The Point)
Religious freedom or animal welfare (Spanish)
(Peter Singer, Clarín)
Legal Journal Number 5 (19): January (Spanish)
(Observatorio de Libertad Religiosa de América Latina y El Caribe)
Brazil: The impact of the PEC [Bill] of Churches will be “billions” of reais, says Crivella (Portuguese)
(Fabricio Julião, Poder 360)
Tuesday, 26 March 2024
EVENT, 26 March 2024 (1:30PM ET): Women in FoRB: Making a Difference
(U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom)
VIRTUAL EVENT, 26 March 2024 (3PM CET / 8AM MDT): Education, Health, and Human Flourishing: The Family's Crucial Role
(European Union & International Affairs Office of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
EVENT, 26 March 2024 (12:30PM ET): The Role of Religion in Resilient Societies: Lesson’s from Africa’s Development Journey (Cambridge, MA, USA)
(Harvard Law School)
Monday, 25 March 2024
Dominican Republic: Religious institutions call for end to harassment of Haitians in Dominican Republic
(Francine-Marie Cooper, Vatican News)
An Arizona church known for feeding migrants now says the city is blocking its work
(Juliana Kim, National Public Radio)
Around the web - 25 March 2024
(Law and Religion Forum, St. John's Law School Center for Law & Religion)
4th International Conference on Religious Diplomacy
(U.S. Embassy & Consulate in Greece)
Championing religious freedom: Notre Dame Law School delegation explores Islamophobia and antisemitism in France
(Arienne Calingo, University of Notre Dame Law School)
Statement on UN's Ramadan ceasefire resolution
(X, Muslim World League)
China: Summer training on religion and rule of law recruiting students
(John Zhang, The China Christian Daily)
China: A Chinese pastor is released after 7 years in prison, only to find himself unable to get an ID
(Huizhong Wu, Associated Press)
India: USCIRF raises alarm over India’s exclusionary Citizenship Amendment Act during Congressional hearing
(U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom)
Religious marriage without marriage license and later annulled by religious court is still recognized by New York
(Howard Friedman, Religion Clause)
Articles of interest - 25 March 2024
(Howard Friedman, Religion Clause)
Court enforces arbitration award requiring husband to furnish Jewish bill of divorce
(Howard Friedman, Religion Clause)
Threats to Catholic Charities staffers increase amid far-right anti-migrant campaign
(Aleja Hertzler-McCain and Jack Jenkins, Religion News Service)
Irish envoy lauds collab with Vatican on foreign policy, humanitarian aid
(Elise Ann Allen, Crux: Taking the Catholic Pulse)
Argentina’s Church releases harsh critique of Milei’s administration
(Eduardo Campos Lima, Crux: Taking the Catholic Pulse)
Americans want a religious president. They just don't see Trump or Biden that way.
(Chris Brennan, USA Today)
Pressure grows on MIT president to stop antisemitic incidents
(Susan Crabtree, Real Clear Politics)
These are war crimes: the leaders of US religious organizations condemned the Russian attacks on the Ukrainian power grid
(Religious Information Service of Ukraine (RISU))
Law and religion roundup – 24th March
(Frank Cranmer, Law & Religion UK)
Bridges – Eastern European Forum for Dialogue wins H.M. King Abdullah II World Interfaith Harmony Week Prize 2024
(The European Times)
Governing Religious Diversity in Global Comparative Perspective
(Edited By Tariq Modood and Thomas Sealy, Routledge)
Conservatism and Grace: The Conservative Case for Religion by Establishment
(Sebastian Morello, Routledge)
Kenya: Migori County religious leaders consultative forum
(National Council of Churches of Kenya)
USCIRF implores State Department to lift waiver amid Turkmenistan’s treatment of Muslims and others during Ramadan
(U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom)
Church attendance has declined in most U.S. religious groups
(Jeffrey M. Jones, Gallup)
Iran: Article18 calls for renewal of Special Rapporteur and Fact-Finding Mission mandates
(Article 18)
Indonesia: Ramadan, religious constitutionalization, and authentic nationalism
(Ferdian Andi, Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University)
Australia: Will religious freedom reforms secure bipartisan support? (audio recording)
(with Philip Ruddock, ABC News Australia)
Guinea Bissau: Religious leaders in Guinea Bissau decry surge in attacks on places of worship
(João Vissesse, ACI Africa)
Report on Religious Freedom in the World by the AIS Foundation presented in Tomar is a "very important warning" (Portuguese)
(Redação, Cidade de Tomar)
Brazil: Woman sentenced for disturbing religious service (Portuguese)
(TJ-DFT)
Brazil: International Religious Freedom Seminar gathers more than 150 people in Boa Vista (Portuguese)
(Roraima em Foco)
Brazil: Uberization and religious freedom (Portuguese)
(Correio Braziliense)
Brazil: In Teresina, Marina Silva preaches religious freedom and says the country is divided (Portuguese)
(Yala Sena, Cidade Verde)
Saturday, 23 March 2024
Putting chaplains in public school is the latest battle in culture wars
(Michelle Boorstein, The Washington Post)
Why Israel’s army exemptions for the ultra-Orthodox are part of a bigger challenge
(Michael Brenner, Religion Unplugged)
Thousands of Palestinians flood Al-Aqsa Mosque despite restrictions
(Al Mayadeen)
A century ago, one state tried to close religious schools − a far cry from today, with controversial plans in place for the nation’s first faith-based charter school
(Charles J. Russo, The Conversation)
Islamic State’s deadly Moscow attack highlights its fixation with Russia
(Andrew Roth, The Guardian)
Russia: "Extremism" prosecutions of elderly Jehovah's Witnesses
(Victoria Arnold, Forum 18 News Service)
Christianity and Pluralism in the Post-Christian West
(Todd Huizinga, The European Conservative)
Wisconsin Supreme Court decision truncates religion
(Paul Marshall, Religion Unplugged)
Myanmar: USCIRF urges for a path forward for victims of Rohingya genocide
(U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom)
Ukraine’s church-state relationship may be changed significantly
(Dmytro Vovk, Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies)
France soccer earns backlash for reported ban on Muslim players fasting during Ramadan
(Chad De Guzman, Time)
French bishops oppose government’s ‘end of life’ bill
(Jean-Benoît Harel, Vatican News)
Ramadan v. France: You shall not name your accuser in vain
(Alice Dejean de la Bâtie, Strasbourg Observers)
Readout of Justice Department community safety webinars with Jewish, Muslim, Arab and Palestinian community stakeholders
(U.S. Department of Justice)
Justice Department hosts forum and sends letter to local officials to reinforce federal civil rights protections for religious land use
(U.S. Department of Justice)
Polling places inside synagogues are being moved for Pennsylvania’s April primary during Passover
(Mark Scolforo, Associated Press)
A Pakistani court sentences a woman to life in prison for burning pages from Islam’s holy book
(Associated Press)
IN governor signs bill to protect student 'release time' for religious instruction
(Alliance Defending Freedom)
7th Circuit: Refusal to dismiss under church autonomy doctrine is not appealable interlocutory order
(Howard Friedman, Religion Clause)
4th Circuit: Inmate's claim for religious diet should move forward
(Howard Friedman, Religion Clause)
Arizona church files lawsuit against the City of San Luis for blocking food distribution to impoverished families
(First Liberty)
What’s the future of faith-based tax breaks?
(Kelsey Dallas, Deseret News)
Religious affairs expert Thomas Bowen moves from city of Washington to White House
(Adelle M. Banks, Religion News Service)
Humanitarian needs and priorities: Debates and dilemmas
(Katherine Marshall, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs, Georgetown University)
Challenging discussions in Geneva at the UN Human Rights Council
(Katherine Marshall, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs, Georgetown University)
Approaching religion in U.S. foreign policy: Evolutions, lessons learned, and where we go from here
(Susan Hayward, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs, Georgetown University)
Hong Kong diocese says no risk to confession with security law
(Elise Ann Allen, Crux: Taking the Catholic Pulse)
DR Congo’s reinstatement of death penalty faces fierce Church opposition
(Ngala Killian Chimtom, Crux: Taking the Catholic Pulse)
Top Italian prelate condemns growth of weapons in Europe, calls for peace
(Elise Ann Allen, Crux: Taking the Catholic Pulse)
Email Subscription
The International Center for Law and Religion Studies maintains a Law and Religion Headlines service covering news about freedom of religion or belief internationally. All interested may subscribe to this service, free of charge, using the link below.
Subscribe