RELIGION HEADLINES TUE 7-22-25

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( SRN NEWS )  The Food and Drug Administration has named a longtime pharmaceutical executive to run the agency’s drug program.  Dr. George Tidmarsh, a cancer and pediatric specialist, will direct the agency’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.  One of his jobs will be to review the safety of the abortion pill mifepristone (miff-uh-PRISS-tone).  The drug has been challenged in court over its danger to women.  The Supreme Court recently kept the pill legal on a technicality, but left the door open to other legal challenges in the future.  Most abortions that take place in the U.S. now are carried out by the use of drugs.

(  )  The Texas attorney general has sued an adult swimming program after two men were allowed to compete in the women’s division at a meet this spring in San Antonio, with one placing first in several events.  The suit alleged that U.S. Masters Swimming undermined the trust of consumers because other swimmers faced an unfair disadvantage in the Spring Nationals.  Attorney General Ken Paxton has issued a statement saying that U.S. Masters Swimming “has deprived female participants of the opportunity to succeed at the highest levels by letting men win countless events.”

(  )  Gay Pride armbands are dividing players and teams at the Women’s European Soccer Championships in Switzerland.  The UEFA is giving team captains the option of wearing the rainbow armbands when they play or selecting plain monocolored versions with the word “respect” instead.  Both versions have been worn so far at the tournament with the captains’ choices facing scrutiny for the meaning behind their decisions.  When Germany played France in their quarterfinal over the weekend, the German captain wore a rainbow armband while her French counterpart chose not to do so.

(  )  The United Nations is expressing renewed concern about the Taliban’s arrest of Afghan women and girls for their failure to comply with the authorities’ Islamic dress code.  In 2022 the Taliban issued a decree calling for all women — even Christians — to show only their eyes and recommending they wear the head-to-toe burqa.  The U.N. is criticizing a recent rash of new arrests saying “These incidents serve to further isolate women and girls, contribute to a climate of fear, and erode public trust.”  Persecution of Christians and other religious minorities has soared under the Taliban’s rule.