Questions tagged [religion]

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I want to leave Islam, but they would execute and kill me. What do I do?

I live in an Islamic country, but I don't want to be a Muslim. I have no choice but to claim to be a Muslim: If I leave Islam, they will execute me according to Muslim law. Where can I go to have a ...
user avatar
47 votes
3 answers
15k views

Can illegal aliens claim sanctuary in a church?

This tweet (as quoted in a Washington Post article), seems to suggest that illegal aliens can claim sanctuary in a church: #GuadalupeGarcia attorney says @ICEgov has lied to him and he will advise ...
user812786's user avatar
23 votes
9 answers
6k views

Is religious confession legally privileged?

I'm referring to Catholic confession to a priest. I'm sure, like attorney-client privilege, that if you disclose a future crime you are planning to commit then they can and will tell the police. I'm ...
Ethan's user avatar
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23 votes
3 answers
9k views

Can U.S. states establish state religions?

The first amendment says: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the ...
PyRulez's user avatar
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17 votes
3 answers
7k views

Does the Satanic Temples new abortion 'ritual' allow abortions under religious freedom?

The Satanic Temple has recently announced an abortion ritual. It's clearly a parody ritual added only after abortion was made illegal, but then again the USA tends to be very generous with their ...
dsollen's user avatar
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13 votes
4 answers
7k views

Conflict between a religious belief that accounts for the existence of transgender people vs. one that doesn't

Country: US State: Michigan Example: Ann belongs to a denomination that accepts the existence of transgender people as what they claim they are. Ann starts a company that grows to over 25 employees,...
notmySOaccount's user avatar
13 votes
2 answers
2k views

What constitutes a "religious belief"

Reading this article I have to wonder what "religion" all these SF police employees belong to that denies them access to the vaccine. Do they have to declare which religion they're a part of ...
dspyz's user avatar
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12 votes
2 answers
1k views

What would happen to the churches (physical buildings), works of art, etc. in case of a new schism?

In the recent past, in the opinion of some theologians, the German catholic church is close to a schism with the Catholic Church. Regardless of whether you agree or not, I'm interested in knowing what ...
An old man in the sea.'s user avatar
11 votes
2 answers
6k views

Is it prohibited to mock the LGBT community in France?

Recent question: Freedom of speech and blasphemy caused me to think about it and ask myself: is there any limits/prohibits for mocking in France? Is it legal to criticize the LGBT community? As we see,...
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11 votes
3 answers
5k views

Do US public school students have a First Amendment right to be able to perform sacred music?

I believe that in the US, public schools are allowed to perform music with religious texts, and that this has been upheld by the Supreme Court on the grounds that the music program is teaching music, ...
nuggethead's user avatar
10 votes
4 answers
7k views

How is Christmas' status as a federal holiday legal?

It seems the United States federal government's establishment of Christmas, a religious holiday, as a federal holiday would be illegal under the establishment clause of the First Amendment. How is it ...
Azor Ahai -him-'s user avatar
10 votes
1 answer
1k views

Can hospitals run by trusts discriminate based on religion in India

Suppose there's a hospital run by any trust. It gives free medicines to patients belonging to a particular religion and other patients have to pay for their medicines. However, India is a secular ...
ShivCK's user avatar
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9 votes
1 answer
6k views

In the US, at what age can a child refuse to attend a religious service mandated by their parent?

If a child has determined that they don't want to attend religious services with their parent, at what age can they no longer be compelled to do so? Given: A parent is stating to their child that ...
Keeta - reinstate Monica's user avatar
7 votes
2 answers
12k views

Can an employer require employees be Christian?

One of the "essential duties and requirements" for this job posting on Stack Overflow is: Maintains a personal, active relationship with Jesus Christ and is a consistent witness for Jesus Christ ...
bishop's user avatar
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6 votes
4 answers
4k views

Can a religious baker refuse service to an underage couple-to-be, in accordance with his deeply-held religious beliefs?

As previously asked, bakers in certain US states can legally refuse service on the basis of sexual orientation. For the purposes of this question, assume that the state is Colorado. Child marriage is ...
Krishna's user avatar
  • 201
6 votes
2 answers
608 views

Employer-mandated participation in self-help meetings with strong pseudo-science and religious undertones

My employer has started a 7-week series of classes, to which all employees currently on the clock are expected to attend. We are paid for the time the same as if we had been working. The self-help ...
Mar's user avatar
  • 269
5 votes
5 answers
5k views

Can a church legally initiate formal discipline against a member who has officially withdrawn/resigned from the church?

Suppose Jane is a member of a fundamentalist Evangelical church. She violates church doctrine and submits her resignation. At this point, church doctrine calls for her to be shunned by the church ...
moonman239's user avatar
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5 votes
3 answers
2k views

Religious exemptions to warrant?

In the second season episode of The X-Files "Red Museum," Mulder and Scully visit the home of a devout vegetarian, Odin, who refuses then access to his house because they eat meat. They don't have ...
Azor Ahai -him-'s user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
208 views

Can a Web site owner prohibit men from accessing a site for religious reasons?

Is it legal for a woman who writes a religious blog to not allow men to access the site because of a belief that women should not teach men about religion?
Someone's user avatar
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5 votes
1 answer
358 views

Is it legal to force a atheist student to read a prayer in a Church of England UK academy?

At my school, which is a Church of England academy, instead of assemblies, we do "Collective Worship" (although everyone still calls them assemblies). With whole-school assemblies, each class takes ...
user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
1k views

Is the bible used by judges?

When making a decision, can a judge use the bible or must he go strictly by the statutes?
user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
1k views

Can religious institutions discriminate when selecting their own clergy?

According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, it is illegal to discriminate against a current employee or candidate based on race, color, religion, sex (including gender identity, ...
Thunderforge's user avatar
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5 votes
3 answers
332 views

What is necessary for a newly formed religion to enjoy first amendment protections?

Is it possible to simply declare that you have started a new religion with arbitrary rules, and expect to enjoy all applicable first amendment protections for it? For example, if your religion just ...
Consis's user avatar
  • 1,307
5 votes
1 answer
272 views

Is it legal in Denmark to deface religious scriptures?

This piece from the New York times got my attention: https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/02/23/world/europe/denmark-quran-burning.html Apparently some Danish guy got convicted of burning the Quran. Q. ...
user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
422 views

When did religious public schools become illegal?

Follow up to https://politics.stackexchange.com/questions/24571/why-cant-a-local-government-run-a-religious-public-school Before the 14th amendment and it's incorporation of the establishment clause ...
Scott's user avatar
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3 votes
1 answer
102 views

Gathering bans and Churches

With bans on gatherings due to the virus, can the government close churches or are they exempt due to seperation laws?
traisjames's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
344 views

What is a 'creed' for purposes of New York City's public accommodation anti-discrimination code?

Aside from the federal anti-discrimination law, New York City has its own more restrictive anti-discrimination laws, which seem to include more protected classes and which also seems to have a much ...
reirab's user avatar
  • 2,931
3 votes
4 answers
6k views

Carrying a Sgian Dubh - UK

There is a LOT of conflicting information on this subject online, mostly revolving around whether or not traditional dress is "sufficient reason" to carry what is essentially a knife in public. My ...
user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
1k views

Is it legal to deny a priest a job because he's atheist

Hypothetically, if you had an Atheist looking to make money by becoming a priest, would the church be legally allowed to deny him the job because of his religion (or lack of), assuming he's still ...
H chalmers's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
247 views

Do some U.S. states' constitutions interpret the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment differently?

Do some U.S. states' constitutions interpret the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment differently? If so, what do they say?
Geremia's user avatar
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3 votes
1 answer
2k views

Is it legal to display Buddhist/Hindu swastikas in Germany?

In Germany, it is illegal to publicly display Nazi symbols, including the swastika. However, the swastika (and its chiral counterpart, the sauwastika) are Buddhist and Hindu religious symbols with ...
nick012000's user avatar
  • 1,688
3 votes
1 answer
180 views

Religious exemption to vaccines that relies on preservation of life

Almost every US state allows a religious exemption to vaccination requirements in schools. Some religions are opposed to vaccination as a basic principle (maybe because healing is reserved for God or ...
Heshy's user avatar
  • 139
3 votes
1 answer
288 views

Can a person legally convert to any religion including very minor religions in India or disavow all religion?

Say a person in India wants to change his religion in Government certificates like the Aadhar card (UID) to say "Pastafarianism" or "Ancient Greek Religion" (think Zeus) or "Scientology". Does the ...
Wally's user avatar
  • 163
3 votes
1 answer
178 views

Why are religious figures given the status of "legal person" in India?

In India, religious figures have been given the status of legal person, and from the case law, I've read there doesn't seem to be a clear rationale for this. Corporations and organizations are also ...
user avatar
3 votes
0 answers
142 views

How does separation of church and state apply to the military academy choir singing Christmas carols?

During the holidays West Point military academy has a "holiday celebration", where their choir sung many traditionally secular holiday songs, sleigh bells, marshmallow world etc. However they also ...
dsollen's user avatar
  • 8,206
2 votes
3 answers
5k views

Are Satanists legal in the US?

I heard that Satanists in USA are legal and are even represented in the counsil of the churches and have "study books" used in school. In Russia there is a law that acts which are done to harm ...
porton's user avatar
  • 257
2 votes
3 answers
585 views

Blasphemy in the Context of Freedom of Speech

So my country is currently exhausting herself with a blasphemy case. It makes me wonder because such case in other countries (Western countries in particular) are not considered a crime because it's a ...
Dorklord's user avatar
  • 173
2 votes
1 answer
283 views

How would the first constitution of India interpret hijab in the classrooms?

Recently, a court in Kerala, India, banned the hijab in classrooms, saying that the hijab is not an integral part of the religion of Islam. Therefore, theoretically, Muslims in any part of India ...
user366312's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
520 views

In UK, can religious institutions discriminate against the sexual orientation of their own clergy?

There is this other question about the same subject but it is applicable to the United States. In this question I want to ask about UK employment laws. This is in consideration of the United Kingdom ...
user100487's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
219 views

Rabbinical courts in Israel throw people in jail?

A rabbinical court in Israel on Thursday sentenced to five years in prison a man who for years has refused to give his wife a divorce. ... In Orthodox Judaism, a marriage cannot be undone unless the ...
Keith McClary's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
750 views

Can a lawyer question you about your religious beliefs during a trial?

Can a lawyer question you about your religious beliefs during a trial? I've heard that the U.S. census asking about your belief is illegal in the United States. It has been against the law since 1976 (...
Sayaman's user avatar
  • 5,170
2 votes
2 answers
205 views

Do sanskrit-mottos from religious texts violate secularism in India?

In India many Government Institutions, agencies, Judicial Bodies etc use mottos from religious texts primarily Hindu texts like Vedas, Puranas, Upanishads etc. Does this violate concept of secularism ...
ShivCK's user avatar
  • 771
2 votes
3 answers
212 views

Does the Icelandic government recognise ULC-officiated marriages?

Is a marriage officiated by an ordained Universal Life Church minister (and performed in the country) legally recognised in Iceland? The Wikipedia page on the ULC only lists US states and this site ...
08915bfe02's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
733 views

Can your workplace ask you personal details about your religion and sub-beliefs from religion in the US?

Not much other than the question. Can a workplace for example ask if you are Catholic, Muslim, Jewish, Jehovah's Witness via survey... and then sub-questions based on your answers? I want cases ...
blankip's user avatar
  • 1,049
2 votes
2 answers
1k views

Can an employer require attendance at a holiday party over the employee's religious objections?

Note: This is related to the question asked at Mandatory participation in workplace holiday potluck, but the issues are not exactly the same, as in that question the issue was not religion, but just ...
mweiss's user avatar
  • 123
2 votes
1 answer
243 views

What would happen to Hobby Lobby under Medicare For All?

The Hobby Lobby SCOTUS case, if I'm not mistaken, says a company can manipulate the nature of their employees' health insurance, justifying it by the idea that since they're providing it, they should ...
Tirous's user avatar
  • 489
2 votes
1 answer
212 views

Public Schools and Religion

So today at school (I go to a public high school in Texas) a substitute teacher told a kid to stop saying Jesus Christ. I was wondering if the teacher has the authority to do this? It was clearly for ...
Will Fisher's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
69 views

In what states of the U.S., and under what conditions can a priest be compelled to testify of information a penitent disclosed to them?

If the states where it is privileged, and may not be admissible in court are fewer, which states are they? Does it matter if information disclosed during priest-penitent communications had been known ...
Raiden Snaker's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
176 views

What are the consequences of having multiple wives as a Hindu in India?

According to the civil code for muslims in Wikipedia, it is found that a man can have multiple wives and there are certain laws for how he act in case of divorce. a Muslim man is allowed to marry up ...
tryst with freedom's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
115 views

What does “belief” mean in the context of The Equalities Act 2010?

The Equalities Act of 2010 (applicable in England, Scotland and Wales) says at Section 10 (in part): Belief means any religious or philosophical belief; and a reference to belief includes a ...
52d6c6af's user avatar
  • 523