From peyote to sex: Religious liberty fight recast

[SecularMotion]

Not long ago, when religious liberty cases reached the courts, the people seeking protection for their beliefs were mostly from small faith groups and their lawyers were liberals.

The contested issues were narrow: a demand that plain, black Amish buggies carry bright safety triangles, for instance, or bans on hallucinogenic tea in a Native American ritual. The resolutions of these cases were as narrowly drawn as the complaints themselves. A judge might carve out an exemption for the practice in question, and life would go on as usual for everyone else.

But after years of culture wars, and amid recent gains for gay rights, the politics of religious liberty has been transformed. Now exemptions are being sought by the largest faith groups in the country, the burning issues are marriage and sex, and the term religious freedom has taken on a new, politicized meaning.

"Things have changed dramatically in the last 20 years," said Michael Moreland, vice dean and professor at Villanova University Law School. "Back then, the Catholic Church wasn't very often in the position of needing exemptions."

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_RELIGIOUS_FREEDOM?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

[cbayer]

1. Another good article on why the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. needs to be repealed.

I hope this is high on the priority list next session.