Lawsuit decided on Bakery Owners who Refuse to Bake a Pro-Same-Sex Marriage Cake

Back in 2014, owners of a bakery based in Ireland refused to decorate a cake with multiple images/slogans supporting same-sex marriage for gay-rights activist Gareth Lee. The Equality Commission, a tax-funded organization, took the owners, the McArthurs, to county court. After the court ruled that the McArthurs had illegally discriminated against Lee, the McArthurs appealed the case to the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal. The appeals court upheld the ruling of the county court. This came as a shock to many, as Northern Ireland is known for its conservative religious views and the denial of same-sex marriage, states Religion News Service author Catherine Pepinster.

The McArthurs, feeling their religious freedom had been stolen from them, appealed once more to the Supreme Court of Great Britain. This week, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the McArthurs. The president of the Supreme Court, Brenda Hale, spoke on the ruling, “Their objection was to the message on the cake, not to the personal characteristics of Mr. Lee. They would have refused to make such a cake for any customer, irrespective of their sexual orientation” (Pepinster 6). In other words, the court found the McArthurs’ actions to be based off their objection to create a cake that goes strongly against their religious beliefs. The McArthurs were not denying serviced to a gay-rights activist because he supported gay rights, but because they did not believe in the message that would be conveyed through the cake.

The ruling of the Supreme Court has the U.K. divided. Civil rights groups, equality organizations, and gay rights groups believe the ruling itself is an act of discrimination against a portion of the population, and opens the door for more discrimination to take place, not just against the gay population, but other minority groups throughout the U.K. While many readers would jump to the conclusion that all members of the LGBT community disagree with the Supreme Court’s ruling, this is not the case. One of the most prominent gay-rights activists in Britain, Peter Tatchell, commended the court’s decision. Tatchell described the ruling as critical to the democracy of the country. Tatchell explained, if the court ruled against the McArthurs, it would set a dangerous precedent within the county that requires businesses to always comply with the wishes of their customers, even if those wishes were to create messages that are “sexist, anti-gay or xenophobic” (Pepinster 15). Tatchell believes the ability to not create if the message conveys ideas that the business owner does not agree with is essential to a democratic government.

Battles against and within religions happen daily. The strict beliefs and ways of life of religious people tends to stir conflict with those who disagree. The consumerist and capitalist ways of society today have forced the close interaction between disagreeing groups. With this forced interaction comes inherent conflict. In the coming years and well into the future, Supreme Courts will have to dissolve these conflicts without denying the rights of freedom of religion or the civil rights of people. This is a tall order to fill, but it can be almost assured that the Supreme Court is not done with cases between religious groups and the secular community. The decisions made in the high courts will have major impact on the religious and non-religious communities and will deeply affect the rights of the people of these groups.

 

Works Cited

Pepinster, Catherine. “Two Cakes, Two Courts, Two Countries: Same Result for Christian Bakers.” Religion News Service, 11 Oct. 2018, religionnews.com/2018/10/11/two-cakes-two-courts-two-countries-same-result-for-christian-bakers/#disqus_thread.

 

The Implications of the New US Tax Bill on America’s Religious Communities

In the recent months since President Trump signed his new Tax Bill into effect, with extreme support from Congress including Speaker of the House, Paul Ryan, there has been a major development of backlash regrading this bill.  Many non-profit institutions are beginning to realize the major effects that this Bill is going to be having on them, this is including, but not limited to religious organizations.

The bill, which was passed in June by President Trump, is going to be imposing 21 percent tax on churches based on some benefits they give their employees.  These benefits include meals and parking for employees.  Republicans created this bill to deduce the amount of non-profits that take advantage of their tax exempt nature, so while this was directed at non-profits in general, the committee felt that all needed to be treated equal, though some tried to advocate for churches in this instance.

Many churches, synagogues and temples are in the beginning stages of feeling the previously unknown effects that this bill is having on them.  It is estimated that, “the Jewish Federations of North America are looking at a new $75,000 tax bill this year because of the change,” (Faller) and “in all, the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability estimates, the IRS will pick up $1 billion from all nonprofits under the provision this year” (Silk), and this is just the beginning.

Many Christian denominations have become particularly upset with this tax bill because most of them tend to vote conservative, which is who passed this law in the first place.  Now, many argue that since Christian, evangelicals in particular, have “sold their souls” to the conservative party they had not anticipated that their communities would be paying heavily for these supposed tax cuts.

Another concern by a variety of religious leaders is the implications this bill will have on smaller branches of churches.  For churches that already have a small employee number, many believe this will only cause more troubles because they won’t be able to hire more help for the small bookkeeping department, but the impositions of this bill will require more work from those that are the bookkeepers of smaller churches.

Recently, many religious groups and politicians alike have been speaking out against this bill, and are attempting to have it repealed.  Though a majority of the nation’s religious institutions seem to be unaware- or simply do not care as much- there have been more than 600 institutions that have come together by signing a petition to repeal this tax bill.  However, it is assumed that a wide array of congressman were unaware of how much this bill would be affecting their voters, and with elections coming up in November many Republican incumbents had been counting on a religious vote to help them remain in congress.

With how divided our nation already is and how politicized almost every issue of American life has become, it comes to no surprise that now religious groups have been even further pushed into the political sphere, it’s the only way that they will be able to fight against this bill.  Though this does come as a surprise with elections in November where Republicans tend to almost count on religious/Christian votes, if enough churches are concerned with this bill and the Republican party, it may begin to shift the political spectrum of religious institutions to the left as the implications come to light.

 

Works Cited

Faler, Brian. “Republican tax law hits churches.” Politico, 26 June 2018, https://www.politico.com/story/2018/06/26/republican-tax-law-churches-employees-670362

 

Silk, Mark. “The new tax bill’s war on churches (and other nonprofits).” Religion News Service, 10 Oct. 2018, https://religionnews.com/2018/10/10/the-tax-bills-war-on-churches-and-other-non-profits/

Elastic Faith

In the article ““Joel Osteen Is Deluded. Just Being Happy Won’t Save You” written by Rick Snedeker, the credibility and character of a Houston Christian Pastor is brought into question. The author makes it clear from the very beginning that he does not believe in Christianity, and refers to Christians as “believers of the unbelievable” (1). His article discusses the recent rise in the Christian ideal of happiness. The happiness of a Christian follower is not exactly something encouraged or pushed in he foundation of the religion. Snedeker points out that the love and worship of God, and adhering to the commandments in the Bible are the ‘key to heaven’, and happiness is neither mentioned nor encouraged to ensure the Christian follower a ticket to heaven. 

Osteen, along with many other more contemporary pastors in the U.S., suggest that happiness should also play a role in the Christian faith. Snedeker argues that in today’s Christianity, it is not uncommon to hear words similar to Osteen’s: “God takes pleasure when we’re happy. So I want you to know this morning: Just do good for your own self. Do good because God wants you to be happy” (2). 

Osteen is described: “lovely, swept-back pompadour, thousand-watt smile and irrepressibly sunny disposition is the king of elastic religious faith, the prophet of worldly happiness” (1).  This description is a stab at Osteen, almost mocking him and in a way challenging his credibility. He is painted as the slimy salesman character and Snedeker almost attacks his followers as naive. Snedeker claims “in fact, they make their doctrines up. Whatever ideas keep the faithful filing into church each Sunday (and other days) are the gospel of these preachers” (4).
I thought the ideas presented in this article tied well into the ideas presented at the end of Will Herberg’s “Prostestant-Catholic-Jew”. Herberg maintains the stance that religion should not necessarily be centered around happiness. On page 532, Herberg opposes the idea of God being someone “who is always ready to give you the pat on the back you need when you happen to feel blue”. He believes that this mentality of the Jewish-Christian community is harmful to the authentic tradition of these religions, contrasting the value in fearing God. These ideas line up with Snedeker’s of maintaining tradition within religious communities. Herberg also sites the words of Patrick O’Boyle on this issue: “many persons appear to be ‘turning to religion as they would to a benign sedative to soothe their mind and settle their nerves'” (532). These ideas attack the validity of many religious people who seem to be drawn to religion not by faith, but because of their emotional needs.

To both Herberg and Snedeker, the idea of people flocking to religion to feel good about themselves is inappropriate, and contrasts the core values of these religions. The increasing use of church as a mental and emotional release: “Go to church— you’ll feel better” (Herberg 533) is not the original purpose of the Christian faith and should not become the purpose. It is one thing to find joy in traditional practice of religion, but an individual should not be drawn into practice for the sole purpose of pursuing happiness. 

I think people should be able to believe what they choose, and if they believe that being happy and talking to God about it will save them, then let them practice what they want. The opposing ideas of Osteen and Herberg display the changes in the Christian faith and I think these changes are interesting.

Herberg, Will. Protestant, Catholic, Jew: an Essay in American Religious Sociology. Univ. of Chicago Pr., 1994.

Snedeker, Rick. “Joel Osteen Is Deluded. Just Being Happy Won’t Save You.” Patheos, Godzooks, 27 Sept. 2018, http://www.patheos.com/blogs/godzooks/2018/09/joel-osteen-happiness/.

 

General Conference Topics

The 188th Semiannual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was held this weekend. The conference involves six two-hour meetings that span over three days, every April and October. A range of topics are addressed by the leaders of the church. The 16 million followers came from many parts of the world to attend the conference in Salt Lake City, Utah or they could watch the broadcast at their church. Several topics were covered over the three days, these are the ones that stood out the most.

Friday the church announced The Mormon Tabernacle Choir has been newly named The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square. Following the name change, President Russell M. Nelson expressed that nicknames for faith are not appropriate. The term Mormon has been accepted in years prior and has not been deemed offensive, but he expects members of the media to recognize the full name of the church. The President stated that using names other than the churches full name is “a major victory for Satan.”

President Dallin Oaks denounced same sex marriage during his talk. He voiced that societies should not “make changes that confuse or alter gender or homogenize the differences between men and women.” Anyone who does not believe that gender is unchangeable is believing in Satan’s cause. He talked about disliking euthanasia, which the church already has a policy against. Also, he urged followers of the church to support anti-abortion.

The Church announced that the normal three-hour meetings on Sunday would be shortened to two hours. The three-hour schedule has been followed since 1980 when it was put in place. Members shared their happiness on social media about the change. Speakers pointed out that the change to two hours would not mean they would have more leisure time. They are expected to study the gospel with their families with the time they are gaining from the shortened schedule. The hope is to get a better balance between instruction in the church and at home.

President Nelson declared that women of the church need to emphasis their focus on faith. Much like the advice given to the younger generation of churchgoers earlier in the year, they are to do this by going without social media for ten days. Women were told to also read the Book of Mormon before the new year. Regular temple attendances and participation in relief services were also suggested to help with women’s faith.

President Nelson announced that there would be 12 new temples. The places the new temples will be built are in Argentina, Brazil, California, Cambodia, Cape Verde, Guam, Mexico, New Zealand, Nigeria, Philippines, Puerto Rico, and Utah. The temple in Salt Lake is going to be renovated.

Elder Ulisses Soares and Garrit W. Gong, new apostles, talked at the conference.  Elder Soares explained that followers who have been in the church their whole lives need to welcome people who are new.  Garrit W. Gong talked about having faith when going through difficult times, and that followers will find strength in their challenges.

Works Cited

Don’t call Mormons “Mormons,” and do try the gospel at home: 9 key takeaways from General Conference. (2018, October 08). Retrieved from https://religionnews.com/2018/10/08/dont-call-mormons-mormons-and-do-try-the-gospel-at-home-9-key-takeaways-from-general-conference/

What Is #LDSconf? (2014, April 03). Retrieved from https://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/what-is-general-conference

 

 

 

Pope Francis and Sexual Abuse Within the Catholic Church

This article shows a pretty large change within America within the Catholic community. The current pope, Pope Francis, is viewed very favorable by only three-tenths of the adult catholic population (based off of those polled). Due to more sexual assault allegations coming to light, Pope Francis is viewed much lower than ever before. When Pope Francis first elected to his position, he had a 43% “very favorable” view from the people of the United States. He is now at his lowest at 30%. This is a large shift in the American people. People are losing faith in the hierarchy of the Catholic church.

This percentage is driven down due to sexual assault scandals arising in the Catholic church community. Another survey was conducted to see how the United States Catholics feel Pope Francis is handling these issues of sexual assault. 62% of those surveyed gave Pope Francis a “Only fair/poor” rating. 31% gave him a “Excellent/good” rating. This number has dropped from 55% in June of 2015, showing just how drastically the Catholic people have changed their view on Pope Francis.  It is also a very important number considering it regards matters of very high sensitivity. This shift follows Pennsylvania Attorney General, Josh Shapiro, bringing to light Catholic priest sexual abuse allegations involving over one thousand children in Pennsylvania alone. There is also evidence of the Catholic church’s attempt to cover up these cases. These findings have started searches within multiple other states. It has been said by higher members of the Catholic church, that Pope Francis has been mishandling sexual assault allegations, and the American Catholics clearly agree.

This large problem has affected the views of not only the Catholics but many of the Christians of the United States. “Francis’ popularity has also declined among other U.S. Christians. In January, 52 percent of white evangelical Protestants had a favorable view of the pope, but that number fell to 32 percent in September. Mainline Protestants saw a similar drop: 67 percent had a favorable view in January, but only 48 percent do now,” (“US Confidence in Pope Francis’ Handling of Abuse Scandal Drops.”). This vast change did not occur within the religiously unaffiliated people of the United States.

I think this article can easily be related to one of the main points we have made in multiple class periods; most religion is based on love. When we talk about this point we often show how America is very prone to showing the opposite. This article does a great job of showing how the Catholic church falls into the same issue. A church that preaches love for one another, and yet allegations often come out that church leaders physically and psychologically break down individuals. Then after that, the victims are forced into cover ups. The Catholic religion is based on deeds and justice as well, unfortunately, even their officials don’t follow all the rules. Religion can be very hypocritical, and even when it is brought to attention, it continues. These problems have been happening for decades within the Catholic church, but due to cover ups, victims often never find their justice or peace. As we have found in multiple class periods, multiple religions often don’t “Practice what they preach,” and the Catholic church does not escape this judgement. According to this article, the American people are noticing.

 

 

Work Cited:

“US Confidence in Pope Francis’ Handling of Abuse Scandal Drops.” Religion News Service, 3 Oct. 2018, religionnews.com/2018/10/02/us-confidence-in-pope-francis-handling-of-abuse-scandal-drops/.

The Reach of #MeToo

We’ve all heard of the movement. After all, with social media and news outlets today, it’s impossible to have missed the massive #MeToo movement that’s not only encompassed the United States, but the world. It started soon after the numerous allegations of sexual harassment by Harvey Weinstein, but has been adopted by everyday women around the globe to share stories of assault and harassment. Churches have been no exception, with many Christian women stepping up to share their stories of the events behind the scenes. However, in a new twist on the story, even the Amish community is beginning to share these experiences.

Heather Adams’ article “Amish not immune to #MeToo, victims say”, opens up a community generally hidden from public view, and describes how the religious culture of the community has made it so easy for women and girls to be targeted. They’ve “been trained to do what men say, Torah Bontrager said, and because they don’t have other people to turn to”. This combination creates a situation in which Amish, and formerly Amish, women are easily attacked. The article mentions a woman who left her community, but couldn’t find an organization willing to help her without her needing to convert to a new religion. Thus, she had to find family who too had abandoned the Amish community to take her in, where she was repeatedly abused and unable to leave because of the lack of outside support.

This isn’t crazy, that family would rape and abuse family. The article also mentions Mary Byler, a girl who from the age of five was repeatedly raped by multiple people, including her own brothers. Though the brothers freely admitted it, the Amish only planned to give them “six weeks of excommunication”, the “most extreme punishment the community gave for sexual assault”.

From the outside, all of this seems, quite frankly, insane. How could a community allow these things to happen? Why would they not punish abusers more for their actions?

These practices and beliefs, however, have deep roots in American culture. From even the beginning of America’s founding, women have been seen as a lesser group. They didn’t work or hunt or provide. Instead they raised children and stayed at home, lending to the concept of women as a lesser sex and thus a lesser people. This archaic idea, both surprisingly and unsurprisingly, stuck around for centuries. Generation were raised to see women as lesser, and taught women themselves these concepts. Women often haven’t held positions of power, but instead have been the ones to obey others. This is clearly seen in the Amish community, as even said within the article. Women are told to obey men there. And so if a man decides he wants to have sex or abuse a woman, then why wouldn’t it be okay?

These deep rooted ideals aren’t unique to the Amish, of course, nor are they unique only to men. Even today both men and women abuse their power and status regarding others. And the Catholic church is of course infamous for the sexual abuse of children. But with the Amish community so well hidden from the mass public, and through the ideals and lifestyles they lead, so idolized for their simple lives, it’s all the more important to shine a light on the actions within that faith.

Works Cited

Adams, Heather. “Amish Not Immune to #MeToo, Victims Say.” Religion News Service, 3 Oct. 2018, religionnews.com/2018/10/03/amish-not-immune-to-metoo-victims-say/.

“The Preachers”: Protestantism at Its Most Extreme

“The Preachers” is a performance art exhibit being featured at this year’s ArtPrize Competition, a popular annual art show in Grand Rapids, Michigan. According to an article by Kayleigh Fongers of Religion News Service, the exhibit is the brainchild of Steve Norman, who preaches at Central Wesleyan Church in Holland, Michigan. 

The exhibit invites individuals who are not clergy to express their thoughts to willing audiences for five minutes at a time. Miller sees “The Preachers” as more than art—he wants individuals who have no outlet to have an opportunity to share their insights with others. Norman is challenging the tradition of only allowing the doctrinally educated to have a voice within a “religious” space. 

While “The Preachers” may seem subversive to Protestant principles, it actually demonstrates several of the most fundamental characteristics of Protestantism. The exhibit can be analyzed as a frame for individualism, religion as belief over action, and the perceived nonessentialism of religion in American society. 

Individualism / Religion as Belief 

“The Preachers” is essentially individualist religion at its most extreme. Protestantism emphasizes the beliefs of each person, and within his exhibit, Norman is giving each participant a chance to vocalize his or her own interpretation of religion. Instead of religion being passed down from authority figures like members of the clergy, “The Preachers” emphasizes that anyone and everyone has the liberty to practice and believe whatever they choose. 

This focus on individual belief is indicative of another tenet of Protestantism: the expression of religion as thought, instead of as action. The very concept of “The Preachers” implies that standing up and speaking is the most essential form of religion. By removing preaching from the context of the church—indeed, from the context of institutional religion—all emphasis on ritual is removed completely. What one does in not signify spirituality; the signification is instead in what one thinks and says. 

The Nonessentialism of Religion 

Note that “The Preachers” is an art exhibition (more specifically, a contestant in ArtPrize’s time-based category). It is, by nature, a performance. In American culture, art is generally admired, but viewed as socially non-essential. Thus, preaching as art propagates the conception that religion is nonessential. 

Indeed, religion (or, more specifically, religion as formal social structure) is largely seen as unnecessary or even archaic. Unlike in many other cultures, there is an effort to maintain a separation between the sacred and the secular. Despite the tenets of Protestantism that underly many tenets of the “American way of life,” a common perception is that religion is socially unnecessary. It is an activity and a personal choice. 

This ties back to the understanding of religion of belief, not as action. While in many cultures, religion is expressed via lifestyle and adherence to family and social structures, Protestantism is understood as a faith: a set of personal beliefs. For most Americans, religion is not fundamental to family, heritage, or socially “belonging.” It is not seen as the glue that binds the individuals into a common, shared culture. 

Conclusion  

“The Preachers” demonstrates a fascinating concept. By pushing the core principles of Protestantism to an extreme, it provides a new form of religious expression framed as art. Steve Norman may actually be on to something; however, whether “The Preachers” will have any real future impact remains yet to be seen.

How do religious colleges affect campus life?

It’s no secret the United States is a religiously diverse nation. With almost 78% of Americans claiming to be part of a religious denomination its not as if we’re not exposed to different religious traditions. However, if you are considering going to a religiously affiliated educational institution you may want to think twice before applying. With International Student enrollment rapidly on the rise, it’s important to ask why.

For many students, especially those coming to the United States from abroad, they, may have not the slightest clue what they’re getting themselves into by enrolling in a religious academic environment. Not to mention, these International Students are very interested in being immersed in American Culture. They believe that these religiously affiliated schools, namely Christian, will be what provides that cultural experience to them. There are hundreds and hundreds of religious institutions in the US, some will place very little emphasis on their religious beliefs and it will affect the experience of the student very little. These Schools would include places like Georgetown University and Boston University. There are other colleges, however, that place a great deal of emphasis on their religious traditions, places like Brigham Young University and Liberty University. A students college career would be greatly affected and influenced by religion at these institutions.

It typically varies by college, but for the most part across the board, there’s a continuous string of responsibilities and requirements that are asked of the students on a more regular basis as students. Things like strict codes of conduct, religion classes, regular convocations, and in some cases even dress codes. These schools try and are very upfront with prospective students about their expectations so that they are not shocked by the Christian culture after they’ve enrolled. There are school agreements that most students will sign that are mandatory pledges to refrain from things like alcohol, drugs and any and all sexual activity.

For a lot of International Students, they’re often afraid of what the larger public university environment has to offer. They see the American College scene portrayed in film after film and many don’t want to take their chances with such a raucous culture. So, to appease their friends, loved ones and even their own selves they will enroll in smaller, religious and more disciplinary schools. That’s exactly why International Student Alex Park chose to attend Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa (Durrani).

For students considering attending religious colleges: Know that while you don’t have to be a member of any particular religion to attend that college or even enjoy your time there. There will be, however, more that is asked of you as it relates to things you’ll have to participate in, courses you have to take and yes, even the people you’ll meet in your day to day lives.

Works Cited

Durrani, Anayat. “Learn About U.S. Colleges With Religious Affiliations.” U.S. News & World Report, U.S. News & World Report, 26 Sept. 2018, http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/2018-09-26/what-it-means-when-a-us-college-has-a-religious-affiliation.