RELIGION HEADLINES

(SRN NEWS) – The California Interscholastic Federation intends to keep on letting boys play on girl’s sports teams despite President Trump’s threat to withhold federal funding.  The CIF says it will comply with a California law that “permits students to participate in school athletic teams consistent with the student’s gender identity”.  Meanwhile, the The Illinois State High School Association says it is awaiting further guidance on the issue.  Illinois also lets boys play on girl’s sports teams, but officials say the president’s executive order may require some changes. 

Instagram has released its list of the most popular religious sites on earth and a historic church sits at number one.  Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris boasts more than 4.7 million hashtags — the most of any religious building or location.  The Gothic masterpiece attracts more than 15 million visitors every year and just recently reopened to the public five years after a devastating fire caved in the roof.  Another giant church, Sagrada Família in Barcelona comes in third on the Instagram list with 3.3 million hashtags. 

A Texas judge has fined a New York doctor for prescribing abortion pills to a woman near Dallas.  It is one of the first challenges to shield laws enacted in Democratic-controlled states where abortion is legal.  The ruling was handed down even as New York Governor Kathy Hochul rejected a request from Louisiana to extradite the same doctor.  Maggie Carpenter was charged in Louisiana with prescribing abortion pills to a pregnant minor.  The Texas judge issued a 100,000 dollar fine against Dr. Carpenter and ordered her to pay attorney’s fees. 

A federal judge has put a two week hold on President Trump’s executive order aimed at preventing doctors from carrying out sex-change operations on children.  The judge’s ruling comes in response to a lawsuit filed earlier this month on behalf of families with children who allege their so-called “gender transitions” are being compromised.  The president’s action would withhold federal funds from any medical institution that helps kids live as the opposite sex.  The restraining order, which could be extended, essentially puts Mr. Trump’s directive on hold while the court case proceeds.