Religious Liberty News
Stories on legal battles, faith in public life, and policies that affect religious freedom. The Daily Signal reports on challenges and victories surrounding First Amendment protections.
-
opinion
As Christian Baker Heads to Court, Hundreds of Artists Speak Out to Defend Free Expression
The Supreme Court is gearing up to hear one of the most important cases of the 2017 term. In Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission, the court will consider whether the state of Colorado may compel cake artist Jack Phillips to create custom wedding cakes for same-sex weddings in violation of his religious beliefs…. -
opinion
If a Christian Baker’s Rights Are Violated, We All Lose. Here’s Why.
Religious freedom has set our nation apart from the very beginning. Among its many benefits, religious freedom allows religious individuals and groups to make unique contributions to the public good. And those contributions are massive—from founding countless universities and hospitals to funding charities and the arts. The economic byproduct of religious liberty is also noteworthy…. -
opinion
This Large Group of Public Officials Backs a Christian Baker’s First Amendment Rights
In September, a large group of policymakers from across the nation filed three different amicus curiae (“friend of the Court”) briefs in support of Jack Phillips, the Colorado baker whose case—Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission—will soon be heard by the Supreme Court. Phillips is being sued by the state of Colorado for declining… -
news
Senate Confirms Barrett as Judge; Democrats Decline Cruz Dare to Defend Religious Liberty
Every Democrat in the Senate has an opportunity to stand for religious liberty this week in a vote to confirm a nominee for a federal appeals court, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said Monday. But only three Democrats crossed over Tuesday afternoon to vote to confirm Notre Dame law professor Amy Coney Barrett as a federal appeals… -
news
Black Leaders Discuss Religious Liberty, Difference Between Civil Rights Movement and LGBT Movement
Black leaders, including a former Atlanta fire chief who was fired for his personal beliefs and an Emmy Award-winning video producer, reject the assertion of liberal activists that support for the traditional definition of marriage is the equivalent of racism. “It never crossed my mind that in the United States of America … the same… -
opinion
Trump Should Defend Life and Religious Liberty at UN General Assembly
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump will address the General Assembly of the United Nations for the first time when it opens its 72nd session. While this General Assembly session opens before the backdrop of several ongoing international crises—such as North Korea’s nuclear provocations and continued conflicts in Syria and the Middle East—there are some other… -
news
Judicial Crisis Network Launches Ad Against Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s ‘Religious Litmus Test’
The Judicial Crisis Network is launching ad campaigns against two Democratic senators who are blocking President Donald Trump’s judicial nominees. The two campaigns are against Sens. Al Franken, D-Minn., and Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. Franken is refusing to return the blue slip for Justice David Stras, nominated to serve on the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of… -
opinion
I’m a Descendant of Holocaust Survivors. Why I’m Appalled at the Comparison of Christian Bakers to Nazis.
It’s November 1938, and the Nazis have confiscated a silk factory owned by the same Jewish family for over a decade, arresting the owner. Fast forward to 2014, and a state official has compared a Colorado Christian baker to the same group that took away what belonged to the Jewish silk factory owner—the father of… -
news
Sen. Mike Lee: Christian Baker Case About First Amendment, ‘Compelled Speech’
Sen. Mike Lee is warning that the case of a Colorado baker in legal peril for refusing to bake a specialty wedding cake for a same-sex couple’s commitment ceremony is about more than religious liberty or LGBT rights, but about whether the government can compel speech. “The government cannot force you to speak where you… -
news
Underreported: Christian Baker Reacts to Government Official Comparing Him to a Nazi
In 2014, Colorado Civil Rights Commissioner Diann Rice compared Jack Phillips, a Christian baker who was sued for declining to make a cake for a same-sex ceremony, to perpetrators of the Holocaust. She said: I would also like to reiterate what we said in … the last meeting [concerning Jack Phillips]. Freedom of religion and… -
news
Lawyers Ask Supreme Court to Hear Second Religious Liberty, Same-Sex Marriage Case
Less than one month after the U.S. Supreme Court announced it would review the case of a Colorado baker who declined to make a cake for a gay couple’s wedding celebration because of his religious beliefs about marriage, lawyers asked the high court to combine it with a similar case involving a florist from Washington… -
news
Christian Baker Fears Loss of ‘Everything’ Unless Supreme Court Upholds Right Not to Make Cakes for Gay Marriages
By deciding to hear the appeal of a Colorado baker, the Supreme Court could make its first ruling next year on whether government may coerce some Christians, Jews, and Muslims to use their creative gifts to celebrate same-sex marriage. The high court announced Monday that it would review the case of baker Jack Phillips, who… -
opinion
Religious Liberty Scores a Win at the Supreme Court
In a big win for religious liberty, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday in favor of Trinity Lutheran Church’s case against the state of Missouri. The case involved discrimination by the state in giving out publicly funded grants. In an opinion by Chief Justice John Roberts, seven members of the court agreed that Missouri had… -
opinion
Trump Nominee Not Hindered by Bernie Sanders’ Religious Litmus Test
No thanks to Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., President Donald Trump’s pick for the Office of Management and Budget is one step closer to his new job. After a faith-based grilling that left Sanders red-faced and Americans in shock, Russell Vought’s nomination squeaked out of the Senate’s Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee by the narrowest… -
news
Opposite Sides of Cultural War Meet to Debate Religious Liberty and Discrimination: Here Is What They Said
Amid the ongoing national debate about religious liberty and discrimination, two conservatives and a liberal wrote a book to present their views and discuss where Americans go from here. At an event last week at The Heritage Foundation, the three co-authors—Ryan T. Anderson, John Corvino, and Sherif Girgis—sat down to discuss their book, “Debating Religious… -
opinion
Sanders’ Religious Test Goes Against Founders’ Vision
What does a man’s theology have to do with the U.S. economy? A lot, if you’re Russell Vought. The respected economist, President Donald Trump’s pick for deputy director at the Office of Management and Budget, thought he’d have to answer some tough questions at his Senate hearing last week. But like most of us, he… -
opinion
Kentucky Court Ruling Protects Artist’s Free Speech, Religious Liberty
When should a business owner’s decisions be condemned as illegal discrimination? Imagine a print shop owned by a devout atheist. A Muslim woman, wearing a hijab, walks into the shop and orders a sign saying, “Allahu Akbar! Allah is greater than all!” Scenario A: The shop owner sees the woman’s hijab when she walks through… -
opinion
Trump’s Executive Order Fails to Address Most Pressing Religious Liberty Threats
President Donald Trump said he’d promote commonsense policies that would “Make America Great Again” and would stand up to politically correct bullying from the left. So why isn’t he doing that in the case of religious freedom? Twice now, he has failed to stand up for commonsense policy on religious liberty when liberal opponents lashed… -
opinion
The Key Questions, Comments From Supreme Court Justices in Religious Liberty Case
On Wednesday morning, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Trinity Lutheran Church’s case against the state of Missouri—a case involving discrimination by the state in giving out publicly funded grants. Missouri has a grant program to offset the cost of resurfacing playgrounds with rubber surfaces made from recycled tires. This helps the state reduce the… -
opinion
Religious Liberty Increasingly Under Threat in India Amid Surge of Hindu Nationalism
Last week on April 5, a mob of Hindu vigilantes beat a man to death for transporting cattle in northern India. Cows are sacred in the Hindu religion, but India is a multicultural country with many non-Hindu citizens. This incident, along with the recent appointment of Hindu nationalist priest Yogi Adityanath as chief minister of…