In July, with little fanfare, Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen signed a state Religious Freedom Restoration Act into law. The bill, similar to many in states across the country, requires the state to demonstrate a "compelling interest" and use the least...
The Washington Post's Jacqueline Salmon reports on the possibility that legislators will let funding lapse on the US Commission on International Religious Freedom. The group, created by Congress, monitors religious freedom around the world and issues a yearly...
A common theme around here is the tension that can exist between governmental rules – everything from zoning to building codes, sanitation and public health – and First Amendment rights to practice religion according to one's conscience. Sometimes,...
A plan for the Wind Ensemble of Henry M. Jackson High School in Everett, Washington, to play a version of Ave Maria during graduation ceremonies was nixed three years ago by school officials who felt inclusion of religious programming at the official event was an...
The Tennessean today profiles the first Buddhist Army chaplain, Thomas Dyer of Memphis. Recruiting chaplains from diverse faiths is a challenge, in part because the recruiting system favors Christians and Jews. A potential chaplain must have a master's degree in...
Breckinridge High School (KY) football coach Scott Mooney thinks there is nothing wrong with inviting his team to a church revival and baptism service. After all, attendance – by teenagers no doubt eager to please and win favor with their coach – was...
