In a historic ruling in June, a divided Supreme Court made same-sex marriage legal in every state. “Christianity require you to push back against the world,” says Collin Hansen of the Gospel Coalition. But author Matthew Vines of the Reformation Project suggests that once even some evangelicals are willing to change their position, then “it starts to significantly shift the dynamic.” More →

August 7, 2015

“This case is about Christians aggressively imposing themselves upon their fellow citizens with the power of government,” says plaintiff lawyer Douglas Laycock. But defense attorney Tom Hungar warned that the case could lead to “government regulating the theological content of prayers, prescribing what is orthodox and what is not in religion.” More →

November 8, 2013

“A state may enforce and dissolve a couple’s marriage, but it cannot sanctify or bless it,” according to a New York judge in one of the same-sex marriage cases the High Court will review next year. More →

March 8, 2013

The Supreme Court is expected to rule soon on sentencing juveniles convicted of murder to life in prison with no possibility of parole. Justice Scalia reminded the Court that many states allow it and “the American people…have decided that’s the rule.” But Justice Ginsburg suggested such sentencing makes a juvenile “a throw-away person.” More →

May 25, 2012

The Supreme Court is weighing the legal challenge to Arizona’s strict immigration law, and religious groups opposed to the law are appealing to language throughout the scriptures “to take care of the stranger,” says Catholic News Service staff writer Patricia Zapor. More →

April 27, 2012

Some have said the nomination of Elena Kagan marks the passing of American Protestantism. Others celebrate it as a measure of how far the country has come. More →

May 14, 2010

DEBORAH POTTER, guest anchor: As we mentioned earlier, another presidential nominee is in the spotlight this week, Sonia Sotomayor. The news of her nomination to the Supreme Court has dominated headlines, along with the California Supreme Court’s decision to uphold … More →

May 29, 2009

In a 5-to-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that executing people for crimes they committed before the age of 18 is unconstitutional. The case that brought the issue to the Supreme Court involved a young Missouri man named Chris Simmons. More →

March 4, 2005

Should juveniles ever be executed? In 1989, the Supreme Court ruled that states could execute offenders as young as 16 if they chose to. But attitudes appear to be shifting, and the case now coming before the court could end that practice for good. More →

October 1, 2004

RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY previews upcoming U.S Supreme Court cases. At issue are recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in schools, state funding for religious education, and the case of Death Row inmate Delma Banks. More →

October 3, 2003