Religious Freedom

While avoiding entanglement between church and state is probably the key legal reason for tax exemptions for churches, that policy also advances some important public (and secular) interests.

A religious freedom case that was argued this week before the Supreme Court is particularly important because it involves conflicting claims, each based on a different part of the First Amendment.

Support was broad and bipartisan for bills including condemnation of antisemitism, improved health care support for racial and ethnic communities, and recognition of Juneteenth as a state holiday.

Easter, Ramadan and Passover all fall in the month of April this year – a good time to remember those who live in conditions where expressions of belief are aggressively or even violently discouraged.

The question of religious discrimination in employment is a pressing one for a few thousand people every year.

Our commitment to protecting constitutional rights is often determined by our willingness to extend them in difficult circumstances.

A Dominican monastery in Poland is among many religious groups who are offering lodging or other humanitarian aid to the thousands of refugees from Ukraine.

Most discussion of religious freedom focuses on legal rules, but other factors – including the demographics of religious belief and affiliation – have an enormous impact.

Utah is one of a handful of states to adopt similar policies protective of student religious practice and will be an example to others.

Research finds that “intensely religious teens” are “more likely … to earn higher GPAs and complete more college education” – showing another way that religious practice helps individuals and thus society.