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Home  News & Opinions Press Room
Press Room
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 America’s religious freedom robust, but tough
challenges remain
Religious liberty
is alive and well in the United States. A review of the news from 2011 confirms
that America’s commitment to the freedom of religion, rooted in the
institutional separation of church and state, remains the most robust in the
world. Across the country, more people, from more diverse faith traditions, are
exercising their religion with confidence, without fear of reprisal or
persecution, and without government interference or competition.
The claim
(advanced by many these days) that somehow a growing campaign of oppression by
American courts or legislators threatens religious exercise generally, or
Christianity in particular, is sorely mistaken! There is no better place on
Earth to be a free person of faith than right here in America.
That being said,
many policies and practices in our federal, state and local governments
continue to create unnecessary barriers, demonstrate harmful bias, and just
plain undermine important safeguards of religious liberty contained in our
laws.
Click here to read a review of the top religious liberty stories of 2011 and a preview of what to watch for in 2012!
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 At the conclusion of the Baptist Joint Committee’s 75th year, I want to express a word of great appreciation for your support over the years and an appeal for your continued assistance. Here are several ways we can work together to defend and extend religious liberty for all and make sure that effort lasts for another 75 years and beyond.
First, you can be our voice where you live. Advocate for the BJC and for religious liberty in your denominational body, your church and your local community. Reading Report from the Capital every month will keep you abreast of current events. Visiting the BJC’s website and blog will do the same. We stand ready to answer any questions or provide you with any additional resources you need to speak authoritatively to your elected leaders, policy shapers in your community, the editorial board of your local newspaper and even your Sunday school class.
Click here to read more.
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 As media reports on the severe effects of bullying have increased, so have demands for anti-bullying protections. Forty-seven states have laws against bullying, many of which were passed or strengthened in the past few years. While it has long been a social problem, bullying is now becoming a major legal issue.
Bullying typically is defined as aggressive behavior (physical, verbal or social) that is intentionally harmful and repeated. That said, there is no uniform definition, and legitimate concerns arise when the word is applied too broadly. As legislatures and schools step up their response to the threat of bullying, several lessons that involve religion are worth noting. First, religious freedom does not excuse bullying. While the freedom of religion should protect the rights of students to express ideas, including ideas that others find offensive, it doesn’t include a right to cause intentional and repeated harm to another person.
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 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Jeff Huett: Phone: 202-544-4226
Cell: 202-680-4127
Cherilyn Crowe: Phone: 202-544-4226
Cell: 615-519-0620
December 7, 2011
WASHINGTON – A diverse coalition of religious and civil rights organizations, including the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, has asked the heads of faith-based offices in 13 federal agencies for information on how the Obama administration determines whether religious organizations may discriminate in hiring for government-funded positions.
This is the latest effort by members of the Coalition Against Religious Discrimination to follow up on then-candidate Barack Obama’s 2008 pledge to restore anti-discrimination protections and end policies instituted by the George W. Bush administration that permit discrimination on the basis of religion in federal employment.
“Instead of reversing the Bush-era policies,” the letter states, “various Administration officials have stated that hiring discrimination is now being reviewed on a ‘case-by-case’ basis.” While administration officials have repeatedly made this claim, they have “never explained the standard it applies or the process [the administration] uses for the analysis.”
Click here to download a pdf of one of the letters sent.
Click here to read more.
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 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Cherilyn Crowe: 202-544-4226
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WASHINGTON—The Religious Liberty Council of the Baptist Joint Committee announces its 7th annual Religious Liberty Essay Scholarship Contest, open to all high school students in the graduating classes of 2012 and 2013. This year’s contest asks students to examine the role of religion in presidential campaigns.
The scholarship contest offers a grand prize of $1,000 and airfare and lodging for two to Washington, D.C. Second prize is $500, and third prize is $100.
Click here to read more about the contest.
Click here to go directly to the contest website.
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At our annual board meeting this year, I had the privilege of making a special presentation of the J.M. Dawson Religious Liberty Award. We presented the award to Richard E. Ice, a board member of 41 years, upon his retirement from the BJC board. Upon receiving the award at the meeting — which Dick did not know
was coming — he instinctively and immediately pulled out a copy of
George Washington’s 1790 letter to the Hebrew Congregation of Newport,
R.I., and read it to the group as something of a swan song to his legacy
on the board.
Click here to read the rest of the column, including part of Washington's letter.
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On October 5, the U.S. Supreme
Court heard oral arguments in what may be the most significant religious
liberty case to reach the High Court in 20 years. If the intense questioning by
the justices was any indication, it may also be one of the most difficult.
At issue in Hosanna-Tabor
Evangelical Lutheran Church v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is
the scope of a court-made rule that precludes most employment-related lawsuits
by ministerial personnel. The BJC joined an amicus effort in the case,
defending the “ministerial exception” as a core application of the separation
of church and state that prevents courts from second-guessing decisions about
who is qualified for ministerial leadership.
Click here to read the rest of the column.
Click here to download (pdf) the BJC's amicus brief in the case.
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 Ministerial exception is crucial implication of religious liberty
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Jeff Huett | Phone: 202-544-4226 | Cell: 202-680-4127
October 5, 2011
WASHINGTON – A legal doctrine that bars most lawsuits between ministerial personnel and their employers is a “clear and crucial implication of religious liberty, church autonomy and the separation of church and state,” says the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty about a case heard today at the U.S. Supreme Court.
The BJC filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case involving an employment dispute between a church-run school for children in grades K-8 and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on behalf of a former teacher commissioned by the church. The case is Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. EEOC, et al.
Click here to download a pdf of the brief.
Click here to read more about the case.
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September 8, 2011
 WASHINGTON — Baptist Joint Committee Executive Director J. Brent
Walker joined a diverse group of religious leaders, including the heads of numerous
Christian, Jewish and Muslim groups, in a service today to commemorate the 10th
anniversary of the September 11 attacks.
The religious leaders mourned victims of the attacks in New York and recognized families of Muslims
killed on September 11, 2001. The coalition, called Shoulder to Shoulder, also highlighted
religious organizations that have led grassroots efforts to unite religious
communities across the country in the face of anti-Muslim sentiment.
Shoulder to Shoulder was formed last year to end anti-Muslim sentiment by
encouraging freedom and peace. Today, the leaders celebrated the religious
community’s role in helping to heal the nation.
Click here to read more, including a statement from BJC Executive Director Brent Walker on the anniversary of the attacks.
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A florist who has been sued by Washington State's Attorney General over her refusal to provide services to a same-sex marriage has returned legal fire. Baronnelle Stutzman filed suit against the AG in response, alleging a violation of First Amendment rights.
The counter suit, filed b... |
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Christian evangelists who traveled to an Islamic culture festival in
Dearborn, Michigan with signs and megaphones intended to cause a stir
and provoke a reaction. They certainly did. Their anti-Islam sentiments
spoken at festival attendees angered some young people who responded by
hurling b... |
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