Crime and Punishment... and Hell

The title of this article says it all:  Belief in Hell Lowers Crime Rate, According to International Study.

Cambodian Religious Switching and Cheapness Considerations

According to this story, members of the Jarai indigenous group in Cambodia are switching from their traditional worship to Christianity because it is cheaper.

Is Technology Good or Bad For Religion?

Lisa Miller at the Washington Post says it can be good.  And she even quotes me in making her case.  See her article here.

She contacted me after seeing our class blog post on religious apps.

The God Issue at the New Scientist

The New Scientist magazine has released a special issue of articles devoted to the scientific study of religion--see here. The articles address many questions such as do people have to be indoctrinated to believe in God (no, it appears children are born primed to see God in the world around them) and is religion necessary for morality (no, but it helps). Warning: some of the articles are gated online.

2012 USCIRF Annual Report Released

The USCIRF released its annual report yesterday. The full report can be found here. As usual, they suggest as "countries of particular concern" (CPCs) those countries with particularly egregious religious freedom violations. The countries identified as CPCs this year are Burma, North Korea, Egypt, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, China, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.

This year there is some controversy about whether Turkey should have been on this list, see this post at Religion Clause.

Religious Freedom Day, 2012

... was yesterday, by a presidential proclamation given by President Obama. Read the short proclamation here. It occurs on the 226th anniversary of the Virginia Statue for Religious Freedom.

Important Supreme Court Ruling on Ministerial Exceptions

On January 11, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously in the Hosanna-Tabor Case that a "ministerial exception" is grounded in the First Amendment, and that a teacher fired at Lutheran school was lawfully fired according to that exception and that she cannot sue

Ministerial exceptions in hiring and firing illustrate one margin where religious and other rights can come into conflict. For example, hiring based on religious characteristics is certainly a form of discrimination, but the Supreme Court acknowledges that such discrimination is legitimate for ministerial positions. Importantly, this ministerial exception, as interpreted and articulated as part of this ruling, applies to religious institutions and their ability to provide religious services. The institution is free "to accept or retain an unwanted minister."

See some useful analysis from the Religion Clause blog here and here.

Top Religion Stories of 2011

From Religion & Ethics Newsweekly and Howard Friedman's Religion Clause blog.