RELIGION HEADLINES MON 6-16-25

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( SRN NEWS )  The Satanic Temple Iowa has filed a complaint accusing state officials of discriminating against the group because of its members’ religion, having denied them access to the state Capitol building for a December holiday display and event.  In 2023, the group’s holiday observances garnered national attention after a Mississippi man destroyed their Iowa Statehouse display depicting a lifesize image of Satan.  It had been permitted in the rotunda along with a Christmas tree and other religious holiday decorations.

(  )  With Israel fighting Muslim extremists in several places, the debate over religious exemptions for ultra-Orthodox men is reaching a fever pitch.  Most Jewish men are required to serve nearly three years of military service followed by years of reserve duty.  But the Orthodox, who make up roughly 13 percent of Israeli society, have traditionally received exemptions if they are studying full-time in religious seminaries. The exemptions — and the government stipends many seminary students receive — have infuriated the general public.

(  )  Seven families have filed a lawsuit challenging Arkansas’ requirement that public school classrooms display the 10 Commandments.  The legislation was signed in April by Republican Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders.  It mirrors a similar statute enacted in Louisiana and another in Texas.  The lawsuit argues that the requirement to post the Commandments violates the families’ First Amendment rights by endorsing a religious viewpoint.  The suit was filed by the ACLU, Americans United for the Separation of Church and State and the Freedom from Religion Foundation.