Faith & Culture News
News and commentary on faith, religious freedom, family values, marriage, parenting, and the cultural trends shaping American life.
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opinion
Case of Christian Florist Shows Faith Is Under Attack in US
Is there anyone who can say what is always right and always wrong and present an unchanging standard by which all behavior can be judged? I raise the question in light of last week’s non-ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court, which declined for a second time to hear an appeal from a flower shop owner… -
opinion
What You Need to Know About Supreme Court Rulings on Faith-Based Foster Care, Student Speech, and More
The Supreme Court has issued a number of significant rulings this term that affect everything from collegiate athletics to adoption agencies. Among the most notable decisions, the high court ruled 9-0 in favor of religious liberty in the case of Fulton v. City of Philadelphia. The case gives a Catholic social service agency in Philadelphia… -
opinion
Exposing Media Bias Is a ‘Bad Faith’ Argument?
The arrogance of the liberal media can be measured by their dismissal of all conservative criticism as “bad faith” attacks on the press. Assuming that conservative critics are dishonest and disreputable cynics is a common trope of CNN’s Brian Stelter when liberal journalists become mired in scandal. In a June 15 “Academic Minute” podcast, Marist… -
opinion
Democrats’ Bad-Faith Attacks on Election Integrity Are Failing in Court
A recent legal proceeding in Florida proves the cheap, theatrical partisanship driving nationwide Democratic attacks on election integrity. Priorities USA, a Democratic super PAC, sued the state of Florida, claiming it made voting-by-mail too difficult. One of the plaintiffs, a Yale graduate student, was asked in a deposition to explain why returning his ballot was… -
news
Why This Pastor Faithfully Confronted California’s Governor Over Shutting Down Churches
His church building in Sacramento is little more than a mile from the California State Capitol, where stringent COVID-19 restrictions originate, so the Rev. Steve Meister easily could make it there and back on his lunch break. Meister, a Bay Area native and lifelong California resident, has lived in various regions of the state but… -
opinion
How to Restore Faith in Our Federal Elections
True democracy hinges on the integrity of the election process. Without the assurance that all legal votes are counted—and all illegal votes are weeded out—trust in our government dissipates. Unfortunately, Americans’ faith in the integrity of our electoral process is eroding—and with good reason. Election fraud is all too real, as proved by the more… -
opinion
How We Can Keep the Faith in America When Everything Is Shaken
To say that this is a difficult time in our nation’s history might be something of an understatement. For many people, the 2020 election didn’t go as they hoped it would. And now, there is also a tremendous amount of anger and grief over the riot that took place at the Capitol last week. Even… -
opinion
How the Chinese Communist Party Robs Children of Their Religious Faith
The U.S. State Department on Dec. 7 designated China a “country of particular concern” for its systematic, egregious, and ongoing violations of the religious freedom of its citizens. The Chinese Communist Party has rightly been under scrutiny for its persecution of religious groups, including the internment of Uighurs in concentration camps in Xinjiang and the… -
opinion
Gov. Northam, It’s Not Up to You to Tell People of Faith How They Can Worship
During a press conference Thursday, Gov. Ralph Northam, D-Va., took it upon himself to tell the faithful not only how they should worship, but also shamed them for wanting to worship with fellow believers. “The holidays are typically times of joy and community. We gather together, we celebrate our faith, and we celebrate with family,”… -
opinion
Memo to the Supreme Court: Keep the Faithful Free to Foster
Foster families provide lifesaving care to hundreds of thousands of children each and every year in the United States. Sadly, more children are in need than there are families ready to provide care. To best serve these children, public policy needs to maximize the number and diversity of foster agencies (including faith-based agencies). This increases… -
news
McConnell Mocks Media for Reporting on Barrett’s Faith as If They ‘Discovered Some Secret Scandal’
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell condemned continuing attacks on Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett Wednesday, warning that “anti-religious bigotry needs to stop.” “It is so revealing to watch elite society keep stumbling upon mainstream religious beliefs and practices that are shared by huge numbers of Christian Americans and thinking they’ve discovered some secret scandal,”… -
opinion
These 4 Immigration Opinions Demonstrate Amy Coney Barrett’s Faithful Adherence to the Law
This op-ed is part of a series that explores the writings and jurisprudence of Judge Amy Coney Barrett, the president’s nominee for the United States Supreme Court. Like all federal circuit courts, the United States Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit handles a fair number of immigration cases. In her three years on the… -
news
Here’s a List of Democrats Who Have Attacked Amy Coney Barrett for Her Faith
A number of Democratic lawmakers and liberal media figures have attacked Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett for her Catholic beliefs. The Catholic mother of seven first came under fire for her Catholic faith at her 2017 confirmation hearings, when Democratic senators suggested that her beliefs might make her unfit to serve as a federal… -
opinion
How Attacks on Faith, Family, and Conscience Threaten All Our Freedoms
During these tumultuous times, as practically every American institution comes under attack from the far left and its allies, two of our most essential values seem to be especially targeted in an effort to “transform America.” Those values are faith and family, the two essential pillars that serve as true stabilizing factors in any society…. -
opinion
Supreme Court’s ‘Faithless Electors’ Decision Safeguards Electoral College
In a decision issued Monday, the Supreme Court ruled that states can punish presidential electors who break their pledge to support the presidential candidate preferred by the citizens of their states. The ruling affirms the Electoral College as an important part of our constitutional structure—one that balances popular sovereignty with the benefits of a federal… -
opinion
Justices to Decide If Religious Schools Can Choose Who Teaches the Faith
The Supreme Court’s final week of oral arguments for its 2019-20 term this week included two cases that involve an important religious freedom issue. In a 2012 decision, Hosanna-Tabor Lutheran Church and School v. EEOC, the Supreme Court said that federal employment discrimination laws do not apply to cases where churches or religious schools fire… -
news
Can’t Go to Church Amid COVID-19? Faith on Facebook Is Here to Help
Faith communities all over the world are leveraging technology to stay connected during the coronavirus pandemic. What would have been impossible a decade ago has been made easy today through smartphones and social media platforms. Facebook recently launched its Faith on Facebook Resource Hub, which is equipped with the tools that pastors, priests, rabbis, and… -
opinion
Faith-Filled Americans, Please Stay Home
As the coronavirus continues to rapidly spread, many state and local governments are issuing shelter-in-place and stay-at-home orders backed by criminal penalties. What do these mean for the spiritual life of Americans—particularly with Passover and Easter coming soon? It’s important to first note that these orders do not target or single out houses of worship… -
opinion
Staying Free and Faithful in a Pandemic
The coronavirus crisis presents challenges to us as a nation and as individuals. There are principles we should keep in mind. Let’s remember how our nation works. We have a Constitution that assigns limited, defined powers to the federal government and leaves the rest to the states and individuals. Some governors, like J.B. Pritzker of… -
opinion
LGBT Left’s Shameful Intolerance of Faith-Based Adoption Agencies Hurts Kids
Why would anyone want to shut down organizations that have a long history of successfully placing vulnerable children in loving homes? At a recent hearing held by the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, Democratic members voiced support for regulations that would do exactly that, by discriminating against faith-based adoption agencies that believe every child…