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Weary of Culture-Warring

The landmark ruling in Hobby Lobby induced a heavy sigh in the chests of some Christians who are tired of culture-warring. Eager for détente, these types tend to view those of us in debates at the nexus of faith and culture with suspicion. They place fault on fellow believers for being too-easily aggrieved, and accuse us of being motivated more by the need to sustain our culture-war industrial complexes than by principle. Recently, one such observer curiously described the Hobby Lobby decisionas a win for the Green family, but a loss for religious liberty. Continue Reading »

Freedoms At Odds

In the wake of the Hobby Lobby decision, argument on the issue has raged with heightened vehemence. Buzzwords abound in the debate—equality, imposition, right, discrimination—and the equivocation at work makes the fallout increasingly polemical. One term that has shared in the general collapse of meaning is “freedom” or “liberty.” Continue Reading »

Podcast on SEBELIUS V. HOBBY LOBBY

At the Center for Law and Religion Forum, my colleague Marc DeGirolami and I have recorded a podcast on last week’s oral argument in Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby, the Contraception Mandate case. We address the background of the litigation, the rhetorical strategies adopted by each side, and the major doctrinal questions the Court will need to resolve. We also make predictions about how the Justices will ultimately rule. The podcast will be useful for students and others looking for an introduction to this extremely important case.

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