Religious differences are increasingly complicating child custody cases and are fueling a growing number of news stories. A generation ago, mothers almost always were granted custody and deemed responsible for most aspects of a child’s upbringing. Today these responsibilities are split more evenly between parents, and religion increasingly is a flash point.
The anniversary of the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion always sparks discussions about this hot-button issue, and the annual March for Life on the National Mall in Washington is one focus of much media attention. But this year there are a number of developments driving the abortion debate in new directions.
The debate over torture is heating up on two fronts: politics and popular culture. The airline bombing attempt on Christmas Day brought renewed calls to use torture on terror suspects, and the Jan. 17 premiere of the new season of “24″ again thrusts that drama’s frequent depictions of torture into the mix.
Two reports in early January highlighted the ongoing tumult in the national debate over the death penalty. A story in The New York Times looked at a prominent legal group’s decision to end its support for capital punishment. And the annual survey from the Death Penalty Information Center presented a mixed picture.
A landmark hate-crimes bill expanding federal statutes to include protections for homosexuals was signed into law on Oct. 28, 2009 by President Barack Obama. The law is a landmark achievement for the gay community but a dividing line for some religious groups.
Religion was at the forefront as the U.S. Supreme Court began its new term this week. Justices heard arguments and seemed divided Wednesday over whether a cross in a national preserve violates the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause.
Americans seem to accept the death penalty as a fact of life, as polls show a steady 2-1 majority favor keeping capital punishment on the books. Yet that consistency can mask a simmering national debate about the efficacy, morality and even legitimacy of the death penalty.
The anniversary of the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, always casts in sharp relief America’s relationship with the Muslim world, and the role of the growing Islamic community in the United States — issues that are covered in a new Pew survey and in a number of ReligionLink guides and resources, as shown below.
Latest religion news
Copyright © 2010 ReligionLink. Login
Icons by Wefunction. Designed by 
