The Daily Signal reports on faith and religion in America, covering Christian, Jewish, and other faith communities, with analysis and commentary on cultural trends, religious liberty, and moral issues that influence public life.
Opinion
SPLC Changes Number of ‘Radical Traditional Catholic Hate Groups’ in Latest ‘Hate Map’ After FBI Backlash
You may have heard that, early last year, the FBI issued a memo targeting Catholics—specifically “radical traditional Catholics”—that relied on the work of the far-left Southern Poverty Law Center. The FBI rushed to rescind the memo on Catholics after a whistleblower published it and The Daily Signal demanded answers. This week, the SPLC released its…
EXCLUSIVE: Vermont Blocked Christian Families From Fostering Over Gender Ideology, Lawsuit Alleges
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—A new lawsuit alleges that Vermont blocked two families from fostering children, despite the state’s foster care system crisis, because the families held traditional, religious views on gender and sexuality. Brian and Kaitlyn Wuoti and Michael and Rebecca Gantt accused the Vermont Department for Children and Families of mandating an “ideological…
‘Condescending and Contemptuous’: University Presidents Blasted in Antisemitism Hearing
“If I might correct the premise of your question” became the phrase of the day from university leaders Thursday in a contentious House hearing focused on antisemitism. Appearing before the House Education and Workforce Committee were Michael Schill, president of Northwestern University; Jonathan Holloway, president of Rutgers University; and Gene Block, chancellor of the University…
Major Pharmacy Chain Settles With Christian Nurse Over Contraceptives Case
CVS Health Corp. settled with nurse practitioner Robyn Strader after she sued the company after it stopped providing religious accommodations regarding “pregnancy prevention services.” Strader said she had been granted a religious exemption for six years permitting her to not prescribe contraceptives and filed the lawsuit in January 2023 after having been fired following the policy change in 2021, according to…
Catholic Kentucky Diocese Doubles Down, Praises Woman as ‘Transgender’ Male Monk
The Catholic Diocese of Lexington, Kentucky, issued a statement on Tuesday praising a woman who identifies as a transgender man. The diocese statement not only used male pronouns to refer to this biological female, it also noted that Bishop John Stowe had “accepted” the woman’s decision. The bishop is “grateful to Brother Christian for his…
Intolerant Left Deserves Penalty Flag for Tackling Catholic NFL Star Butker
NFL Kansas City Chiefs placekicker Harrison Butker on May 11 gave the commencement address at Benedictine College, a Catholic school in Kansas. Within 48 hours, the media elites were ablaze with outrage. There’s a “growing uproar,” warned NBC’s Hoda Kotb. A Catholic speaker talked about Catholic issues to Catholic graduates. But the Butker critics who…
F. Scott Fitzgerald once quipped that the “test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.” The protests over the war between Israel and Hamas that have roiled university campuses across the nation are testing our collective intelligence…
‘Our Babies Sometimes Say Harmful Things’: Superintendents Deny Antisemitism Is ‘Pervasive’ Problem in Their Schools
In an explosive House subcommittee hearing Wednesday, Republicans pressed the leaders of three major public school districts about their responses to antisemitic incidents. Rep. Kevin Kiley, R-Calif., presented Enikia Ford Morthel, superintendent of Berkeley Unified School District in California, with a report on antisemitic incidents in her school district. “You gave us a statement in…
Over the past two weeks, American college and university campuses have witnessed an explosion of antisemitic rhetoric and conduct that once had been thought to be unthinkable today. A portion of the Columbia University lawn has become a tent city to protest—or more specifically, to protest the right of Israel, and Jews, to exist. As…
I Went to the UPenn Campus to Address the Antisemitism Epidemic at US Colleges
Victoria Coates, vice president of the Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy at The Heritage Foundation, spoke at the University of Pennsylvania on Thursday about the ongoing antisemitism directed at Jews occurring on college campuses today. She said that Hamas’ terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, did not start but instead…
EXCLUSIVE: How The Daily Wire Is Bringing the Christian Faith of King Arthur and Merlin to Life
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—The Daily Wire’s new streaming television show “The Pendragon Cycle” will highlight the Christian faith of King Arthur and Merlin as portrayed in Stephen R. Lawhead’s book series. The series will show how the wizard Merlin and his father, the bard Taliesin, learn to let God direct their supernatural powers, Jeremy…
Rep. Stefanik Grills Columbia University President at Second House Antisemitism Hearing
Columbia University and other higher institutions have entirely falled to hold antisemites accountable according to Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y. and other Republican lawmakers. The House Committee on Education and the Workforce held its second hearing on antisemitism on Wednesday. The committee brought in Columbia University President Minouche Shafik and two board of trustee members to…
‘UN-AMERICAN’: SPLC Uses ‘Terrorist Tactics’ to Silence Dissent, Religious Freedom Lawyer Says
This is the third in a three-part series on the movement for religious freedom in the U.S. legal system today. Check out the first part about how Christians who refuse to take a COVID-19 vaccine face “medical death row” here and the second part about the “rise of global censorship” here. NASHVILLE, Tenn.—Mike Farris, general…
Religious Freedom, Part 2: Lawyer Sounds Alarm About ‘Rise of Global Censorship’
This is the second in a three-part series on the movement for religious freedom in the U.S. legal system today. Check out the first part about how Christians who refuse to take a COVID-19 vaccine face “medical death row” here. NASHVILLE, Tenn.—Ryan Bangert, senior vice president at the religious freedom law firm Alliance Defending Freedom,…
Religious Freedom, Part 1: Americans Fight to Get Off ‘Medical Death Row’ Over Vaccination Status
This is the first in a three-part series on the movement for religious freedom in the U.S. legal system today. Stay tuned for the next two installments. NASHVILLE, Tenn.—Brad Dacus, president of the Pacific Justice Institute, represents Americans in religious freedom cases who have been turned away from hospitals because they refuse to take a…
How ADL’s Partisanship Harms the Fight Against Antisemitism
For over a century, the Anti-Defamation League has enjoyed a reputation as the preeminent Jewish organization combating antisemitism and all forms of hate. Its acronym, ADL, has “household name” status—and not just in Jewish homes. This makes its current penchant for partisanship extraordinarily dangerous for, and beyond, the Jewish community. Last December, Senate Republicans learned…
Politico Reporter Backpedals on Definition of ‘Christian Nationalism,’ Further Exposes Her Bias
Politico reporter Heidi Przybyla said in a recent television appearance that so-called Christian nationalists believe our rights “come from God,” rather than “any earthly authority.” After getting eviscerated online, she backpedaled to nuance her position. After all, Thomas Jefferson would qualify under her definition, since he wrote in the Declaration of Independence that “we are endowed…
Christian Employees Can Challenge Mandated DEI Trainings on Religious Freedom Grounds, Lawyer Says
NASHVILLE, Tenn.—Christian employees can raise religious freedom complaints against mandated diversity, equity, and inclusion trainings if those DEI trainings force an ideology on them or make them less able to live out their faith, a prominent religious liberty lawyer tells “The Daily Signal Podcast.” “There’s a lot of push for diversity initiatives and things like…
‘Grave Concerns’: House Education Committee Demands Documents Related to Elite University’s Handling of Antisemitism
The House Committee on Education and the Workforce is demanding documents from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology related to the school’s handling of antisemitism on campus, according to a Friday letter. The House committee is requesting all reports of antisemitic and discriminatory acts at the university since Jan. 1, 2021; documents outlining the school’s processes…
Christian Who Survived Assassination Attempt in Communist Romania Issues Dire Warning About Erosion of Parental Rights in the US
NASHVILLE, Tenn.—A Christian who faced persecution for her faith in Communist Romania in the 1980s and barely survived an assassination attempt orchestrated by dictator Nicolae Ceausescu warns that the undermining of parental rights in the U.S. today echoes Ceausescu’s totalitarian government. “It’s the same system that the socialists use in order for parents to be…