Written by Don ByrdThe House Subcommittee on Religious Personnel held a hearing yesterday on the issue of religious accommodation in the military. The discussion focused on restrictions on military chaplains and on personnel that require exemptions for religiously required beards or head coverings.
Religion News Service reports that as for chaplains, members of the congressional subcommittee who hoped to highlight heavy-handed regulations limiting religious freedom, the chaplains on the panel provided little support.
Written by Don ByrdThe Supreme Court’s hearing later this Spring will rule on whether the contraception mandate in the Affordable Care Act oversteps the First Amendment’s religious freedom guarantees as spelled out in the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). RFRA limits the federal government’s ability to substantially burden a person’s religious exercise. Much of the contraception mandate battle focuses on the extent of that law’s protections. In what circumstances can corporations qualify as persons protected by the law? Does a mandate regulating a corporation substantially burden the religious exercise of the owners of the corporation?
Written by Don ByrdAssociated Baptist Press reports the Justice Department has filed a notice of appeal with the 7th Circuit to challenge last year’s trial court ruling that the tax code’s housing allowance for ministers unconstitutional.
Written by Don ByrdA few days ago, the Pentagon announced a change in policy to make more difficult the denial of a servicemember’s request for a religious accommodation from the military’s strict grooming standards. The change has been hailed as a step forward in religious freedom rights for many faiths previously restricted from service due to the prohibition on long hair, turbans, head coverings and beards. But many now argue the change does not go far enough to ensure that a person whose faith requires an accommodation will receive one.
