The recent Health and Human Services (HHS) mandate under Obamacare, requiring nearly all insurance plans to cover abortion-inducing drugs, contraception, and sterilization, has sparked heated debate across the country. Although proponents of Obamacare have attempted to frame the debate differently, one question remains fundamentally at issue: Can the federal government…
Abstract: Freedom of religion is at the heart of the American understanding of liberty. Under our constitutional order, the free exercise of religion is not a mere matter of toleration but an inalienable natural right. As George Washington explained in his famous…
America is in the midst of a gravely serious debate about religious liberty. It was touched off by news that President Obama’s health care law will coerce religious groups to violate conscience by covering certain products and services in their health plans or face steep fines. Sadly,…
In this week's Heritage in Focus podcast, Jennifer Marshall discusses Obamacare's anti-conscience mandate, women, and religious liberty. David Weinberger hosts. To get regular updates on Heritage in Focus podcasts, visit our RSS feed or subscribe on iTunes. To listen to more Heritage Foundation podcasts, visit…
Like an unpleasant medical exam, President Obama apparently wanted to get this over quickly. But there are complications. Many Americans are deeply troubled by abortion-inducing drugs such as the morning-after pill and the week-after drug Ella—what some call “emergency contraception.” So when Health and Human Services Secretary…
Trampling Religious Liberty The Anti-Conscience Mandate: Under Obamacare, all insurance plans must cover, at no charge, abortion-inducing drugs, contraceptives, sterilization, and patient education and counseling for…
A Heritage video is featured on a news segment on the contraception mandate on KTVI. …
Jennifer Marshall discusses religious liberty and other topics. …
Abstract: Religious staffing by religious organizations is an established, baseline position in federal law that deserves continued support. Most fundamentally, religious staffing by religious organizations is socially desirable conduct that benefits individuals and society, not unjust discrimination that should be eradicated through law. In…
On this week’s Scribecast, David Weinberger and Lachlan Markay interview Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA) about his crusade for global human and religious rights. Wolf is the author of a book on the subject, “Prisoner of Conscience.” He also discussed making long-term reforms to entitlement programs and the changes he’s observed…
Abstract: Proponents of religious freedom have firmly established that same-sex marriage threatens religious freedom in a number of ways. In response, some have argued that certain threats to religious freedom discussed in this context have more to do with nondiscrimination laws than with the…
Abstract: Did America have a Christian Founding? This disputed question, far from being only of historical interest, has important implications for how we conceive of the role of religion in the American…
How long are we going to keep this experiment, this America? We are "testing whether this nation can long endure," Lincoln said at Gettysburg. We're still testing. Is America a meteor that blazed across the heavens and is now exhausted? Or rather is our present moral fog a transient time…
The New York legislature’s June 24 vote to redefine the family and recognize homosexual marriage will have a number of short-term and long-term impacts within and well beyond the Empire State.[1] The vote does not signal an end to the now two-decade fight over the meaning of marriage.…
Abstract: The repeal of the 1993 law prohibiting open homosexuality in the military poses significant risk for military service members and chaplains who, as matters of religious or moral conviction, hold to traditional values regarding marriage and sexual…
As Americans exercise their right to vote in presidential primaries, caucuses, and conventions, candidates face questions from voters on a wide range of issues, including religious faith. When it comes to this issue, what should they be looking for? Which questions about religion are most helpful in selecting a President?…
On October 5, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a very important case concerning religious freedom. Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. EEOC has to do with which employees of a church-run school count as ministers and, thus, whose employment status lies within the sphere of that…
Abstract: Today, religious liberty issues are more complicated than simply freedom from government interference in religious worship or teaching. Threats to religious liberty and respect for conscience are emerging in the health care field, in the area of institutional religious freedom, and in the…
The government of Illinois does not understand the importance of, and the legal protections for, religious liberty. The law protects the right of conscience of health care providers, but the Illinois bureaucracy is on a six-year (so far) unholy war to force two pharmacists who own their own businesses to…
Three years ago, the University of Notre Dame invited President Barack Obama to deliver a commencement address and...…
There aren’t many people who justify comparisons to Nelson Mandela, but longtime Burmese political dissident Aung San...…
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius made yet another embarrassing admission about...…
Virginians witnessed an important victory for religious liberty last week. On Monday, Governor Bob McDonnell (R) signed...…
Today, on Thomas Jefferson’s birthday, we remember the man who can list as his crowning achievement the Declaration of...…
This morning, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) published a document titled “Our First, Most...…
As we mark Good Friday and Passover this year, Americans’ religious freedom has become palpably dearer. Religious...…
One of Vanderbilt University’s largest Christian student organizations has announced it will formally break ties with...…
Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) has found a new ally in its fight against the Health and Human Services (HHS)...…
A new Gallup poll finds that a majority of Americans are very or moderately religious, a statistic that bodes well for...…