The U.S. Supreme Court takes up two cases this week on the fiercely debated moral question of same-sex marriage, and religious voices on both sides of the issue are weighing in on what could become pivotal decisions in the court’s — and the nation’s — history.
America’s Founding Fathers serve as patriarchs of the nation’s civil religion, but also as flashpoints in debates about faith in U.S. society. The President’s Day holiday spotlights this enduring focus on religion and the nation’s leaders – then and now – a theme running through recent books and movies, and in ongoing arguments about church and state.
The 40th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion falls on Jan. 22, and the March for Life, the annual anti-abortion rally in Washington, is on Jan. 25. Debate over this issue is as intense as ever yet it’s unclear that either opponents or supporters of abortion rights are winning.
The shooting massacre at a Connecticut grade school has shocked the nation and prompted a flood of reflections on the role of faith in providing consolation and understanding. But there is also an intense debate over how, or whether, religious groups should weigh in on the public policy debate about gun violence.
Abortion rights and health care are rarely far from the headlines, but they are especially hot topics given the furor over the decision — later rescinded — by the Susan G. Komen foundation to end most of its grants to Planned Parenthood.
The legitimacy of the death penalty has emerged as a hot topic in the national conversation. Oregon’s governor declared a moratorium on executions, the execution of convicted murderer Troy Davis in September sparked controversy, and in October the Supreme Court heard a case whose outcome could affect the use of the death penalty.
Plans to build or expand mosques have sparked controversy across the country in the past year, and news coverage has often focused on these disputes and cast them as symptomatic of a wider friction between Muslims and other Americans. But zoning issues are dogging efforts by all religious groups to build houses of worship.
The anniversary of the Jan. 22, 1973, Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion always sparks discussions about this hot-button issue, and the annual March for Life in Washington is one focus of attention. But the Republican takeover of the House has also raised hopes — and concerns — that new legislation could limit abortion rights.
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