Catholic groups file suit. Dozens of Catholic universities, dioceses and other institutions filed lawsuits in courts around the country recently in a coordinated effort, spearheaded by the U.S. hierarchy and Catholic conservatives, to overturn the Obama administration's contraception mandate plan. The 43 plaintiffs, including 13 dioceses and the University of Notre Dame, say the mandate forces religious employers to provide contraceptive and sterilization services to employees that violate their beliefs. They say that infringes on First Amendment religious freedom protections and charge the federal government's exemption for religious organizations is too narrow. The Obama administration and its allies reject those assertions and say a proposed compromise to the mandate effectively bypasses any entanglement in birth control coverage by faith-based groups.
Crystal Cathedral to move into smaller church. In a building swap, the Crystal Cathedral has announced it will move its congregation to a smaller Roman Catholic church after the iconic Protestant megachurch was sold to the Catholic Diocese of Orange, Calif. Last fall, a bankruptcy judge approved the diocese's $57.5 million purchase of the glass-walled building in Garden Grove. The cathedral's congregation is exercising an option in the sales agreement that permits it to move to St. Callistus Catholic Church in June 2013. The Catholic congregation at St. Callistus, and later the administrative offices of the diocese, will move to the Crystal Cathedral site. The Cathedral congregation will pay $25,000 in monthly rent for two years starting January 2014, with the cost escalating in a predetermined formula after that. The cathedral said the length of the lease agreement has not been determined.
Sikh TSA agent wins lawsuit. A Sikh security officer at New York's largest airport won a $30,000 settlement against the Department of Homeland Security, which had forbidden him from displaying his kara—a wristband Sikhs wear to remind them of the divine. Kulwinder Singh called it a violation of his religious rights and took his case to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The EEOC decided the case in March and required the TSA to allow employees to wear the kara freely, and to post a notice of the violation by mid-June.
Photographer to appeal decision. Attorneys for a Christian wedding photographer say they will appeal a New Mexico court decision that ruled she violated anti-discrimination laws by refusing to photograph a lesbian commitment ceremony. The controversy began in 2006 when Elaine Huguenin, co-owner of Elane Photography, refused to photograph a "commitment ceremony" for Vanessa Willock and her partner. Huguenin claims her refusal was rooted in her Christian faith that views marriage as a sacred union between one man and one woman. The decision by the New Mexico Court of Appeals upholds a 2008 ruling by the New Mexico Civil Rights Commission in favor of the same-sex couple that subsequently was upheld in district court.
—Compiled from Religion News Service
We seek to connect God’s story and God’s people around the world. To learn more about God’s story, click here.
Send comments and feedback to Eric Black, our editor. For comments to be published, please specify “letter to the editor.” Maximum length for publication is 300 words.