Nation

West Virginia’s GOP supermajority House of Delegates passed a bill Monday that would create a test for courts to apply when people challenge government regulations they believe interfere with their constitutional right to religious freedom.

Part of the siege’s legacy in popular culture is tied to sensational coverage that has presented the Branch Davidians as a cult. But the tragedy is also a powerful moment in political extremist groups’ ideologies.

An English professor at a private Christian university in Florida has been accused of “indoctrinating students.” Samuel Joeckel, who has taught at the university for over 20 years, reports that his contract renewal is being delayed while his lessons on racial justice are reviewed.

A Missouri bill that would allow religious and other "belief-based" organizations to refuse membership to certain students raised concerns Wednesday evening that it could open the door to discrimination on college campuses, especially against LGBTQ students.

Professor Charles J. Russo explores the context surrounding a U.S. Supreme Court case that will soon address the extent to which employers must make “reasonable accommodations” for the religious beliefs and practices of employees. What exactly that means has been unclear for decades.

With the announcement on Saturday that the 98-year-old Jimmy Carter would enter hospice care at home, this issue of A Public Witness reflects on the moral exemplar he offered not only after his presidency but also during his underappreciated time in the Oval Office.

This issue of A Public Witness offers a quick class on the history of our national motto “In God We Trust” and recent Christian Nationalistic efforts to display it in public schools before considering the elementary flaw with such legislation.

Religious leaders with the Iowa Catholic Conference, Episcopal Diocese of Iowa, Interfaith Alliance of Iowa, and United Church of Christ of Iowa, argued the death penalty is immoral in all circumstances and underlined that we can deter and prevent horrific crimes without ending a person’s life.

Latino Christian leaders, as part of their faith-led effort dubbed “Evangélicos for Justice,” are urging Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — who signed Dillbeck’s death warrant on Jan. 23 — to consider his disability and to offer him clemency.

The first Black woman to be ordained in the Episcopal Church, who was also a trailblazing lawyer, civil rights activist, and writer, will be honored on the U.S. quarter next year. Pauli Murray has been chosen as one of five honorees for the American Women Quarters Program.