Religion & Government

short readsSep 22, 2014

In some European countries, church membership means paying more taxes

Are government church taxes causing Germans to leave the church?
short readsAug 1, 2014

Kaiser: Americans’ views of Hobby Lobby ruling are evenly divided

The U.S. public is evenly split in its view of the Supreme Court decision ruling that some for-profit corporations have religious rights and can opt out of the Affordable Care Act’s contraception mandate.
short readsJul 31, 2014

Americans divided on how the Supreme Court should interpret the Constitution

Democrats and Republicans remain deeply divided about how the U.S. Supreme Court should interpret the Constitution. And there are many differences among different demographic groups – especially when it comes to religious affiliation.
short readsJul 22, 2014

In 30 countries, heads of state must belong to a certain religion

A new Pew Research analysis finds that 30 of the world’s countries (15%) belong to a unique group of nations that call for their heads of state to have a particular religious affiliation.
short readsJul 10, 2014

A look at the damage governments inflict on religious property

Though religious property damage by governments were most common in the Middle East-North Africa region, instances have occured in every region of the world.
short readsJul 7, 2014

What is a ‘closely held corporation,’ anyway, and how many are there?

The Supreme Court’s long-awaited decision in the Hobby Lobby case says “closely held” corporations can have religious rights that need to be respected. What was it talking about?
short readsJul 7, 2014

For gay newlyweds in some states, ‘limbo’ may last another year

It has happened in four states so far, and may well happen in others – a kind of marital limbo where licenses have been granted and vows exchanged, but the marriages themselves have not been officially recognized.
short readsJul 2, 2014

The Hobby Lobby impact: A Q&A

The U.S. Supreme Court decision allowing for-profit businesses to opt out of the contraceptive mandate in the new health care law has raised questions about what the ruling might mean for businesses, for future challenges to the contraception mandate, and even for the future of church-state law. We posed these questions to Robert Tuttle, one of the nation’s experts on church-state issues. He is the Berz Research Professor of Law and Religion at the George Washington University.
short readsMay 30, 2014

Four-in-Ten Pakistanis say honor killing of women can be at least sometimes justified

Pakistan’s prime minister called the stoning death this week of a 25-year-old pregnant woman “unacceptable,” but a survey shows that not all Pakistanis share that view.
short readsMay 5, 2014

Supreme Court affirms town council’s right to prayer

The Supreme Court brought some clarity to the role of prayer in civic life today by reaffirming that prayer before legislative bodies is not only constitutional, but that it can contain Christian and other faith-specific language. At the same time, today’s 5-4 ruling in Town of Greece v. Galloway largely upheld existing case law rather than significantly breaking new ground.