Religious Freedom

Religious-liberty lawyer Asma Uddin has long considered her work defending people of all faiths to be a calling more than a job. Yet even as she seeks equal protection for Evangelicals, Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims, Native Americans, Jews, and Catholics alike, she has seen an ominous increase in attempts to criminalize Islam and exclude American Muslims from their inalienable rights. Somehow, the view that Muslims aren’t human enough for human rights or constitutional protections is moving from the fringe to the mainstream - along with the claim “Islam is not a religion.”

Seen as godless by the religious and weak by the atheists, secularism mostly has been misunderstood. In How to Be Secular, Berlinerblau argues for a return to America’s hard-won secular tradition; the best way to protect religious diversity and freedom lies in keeping an eye on the encroachment of each into the other. Berlinerblau passionately defends the virtues of secularism, reminds us what it is and what it can protect, and urges us to mobilize around its cause, which is for all Americans to continue to enjoy freedom for - and from - religion.

The Obama administration’s overreaching and pervasive secularist policies represent the greatest government-directed assault on religious freedom in American history. So argues conservative movement leader Phyllis Schlafly and journalist George Neumayr. In No Higher Power, Schlafly and Neumayr show how Obama is waging war on our religious liberties and actively working to create one nation under him rather than one nation under God.

A riveting storyline that includes a sting operation carried out by 20-armed federal agents on the tarmac of a South Florida runway, and the tales of a prisoner living inside America’s maximum security prison, Leavenworth Penitentiary – this autobiography will captivate you from start to finish.

Just as the documentary Eyes on the Prize captured the rich drama of the civil rights movement, Sacred Liberty brings to life the remarkable story of how America became one of the few nations in world history that has religious freedom, diversity, and high levels of piety at the same time. Finally, Sacred Liberty provides a road map for how, in the face of modern threats to religious freedom, this great achievement can be preserved.

So Help Me God relates the compelling story of Chief Justice Roy Moore, including his controversial Ten Commandments displays, his refusal to obey an unlawful order of a federal court, and why the critical legal and political question of our time is, 'Can the state acknowledge God?'

New York Times best-selling author and award-winning broadcaster Tavis Smiley recounts the final 365 days of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life, revealing the minister's trials and tribulations - denunciations by the press, rejection from the president, dismissal by the country's Black middle class and militants, assaults on his character, ideology, and political tactics, to name a few - all of which he had to rise above in order to lead and address the racism, poverty, and militarism that threatened to destroy our democracy.

The culture wars have distorted the dramatic story of how Americans came to worship freely. Many activists on the right maintain that the United States was founded as a "Christian nation". Many on the left contend that the Founders were secular or Deist and that the First Amendment was designed to boldly separate church and state throughout the land. None of these claims are true, argues Beliefnet.com editor in chief Steven Waldman.

In an unsettling time in American history, the outbreak of right-wing violence is among the most disturbing developments. In recent years, attacks originating from the far right of American politics have targeted religious and ethnic minorities, with a series of antigovernment militants, religious extremists, and lone-wolf mass shooters inspired by right-wing ideologies. The need to understand the nature of far-right violence is greater than ever. In American Zealots, Arie Perliger provides a wide-ranging and rigorously researched overview of right-wing domestic terrorism.

Known as the father of the Protestant Reformation, Martin Luther has had an enormous impact on Western Christianity and culture. In Luther on the Christian Life, historian Carl Trueman introduces listeners to the lively Reformer, taking them on a tour of his historical context, theological system, and approach to the Christian life. Whether exploring Luther’s theology of protest, ever-present sense of humor, or misunderstood view of sanctification, this book will help modern listeners go deeper in their spiritual walk by learning from one of the great teachers of the faith.

One of the most infamous American freethinkers in his day, Elihu Palmer has been largely forgotten. No cache of his personal papers exists, and his book has been long out of print. Yet his story merits telling, Kirsten Fischer argues, and not only for the dramatic account of a man who lost his eyesight before the age of 30 and still became a book author, newspaper editor, and itinerant public speaker.

Christians are often thought of as defending only their own religious interests in the public square. They are viewed as worrying exclusively about the erosion of their freedom to assemble and to follow their convictions, while not seeming as concerned about publicly defending the rights of Muslims, Hindus, Jews, and atheists to do the same. Andrew T. Walker, an emerging Southern Baptist public theologian, argues for a robust Christian ethic of religious liberty that helps the church defend religious freedom for everyone in a pluralistic society.

Dive into the intricate web of judicial interpretations surrounding religious freedom and the First Amendment with "What’s Law Got to do With it?." In this thought-provoking exploration, Rev Dr. Anthony Suarez Esq, a seasoned legal scholar, dissects the evolving landscape of the "establishment clause" and the "free exercise clause" and delves into the inherent tensions between these constitutional principles.

What's a congressman from Virginia doing in places where bullets fly and babies starve? Thirty years ago, Frank Wolf was elected to the U.S. Congress to address local transportation issues. Fueled by a faith that made him believe he could do something about it, the congressman grew to champion human and religious rights around the world---from cracking down on gang-related crimes in the U.S. to relieving suffering from war, AIDS, and famine in places like Darfur, China, and Bosnia.

The hour is critical. The American republic is suffering its gravest crisis since the Civil War. Conflicts, hostility, and incivility now threaten to tear the country apart. Competing visions have led to a dangerous moment of cultural self-destruction. This is no longer politics as usual, but an era of political warfare where our enemies are not foreign adversaries, but our fellow citizens. Yet the roots of the crisis are deeper than many realize. Os Guinness argues that we face a fundamental crisis of freedom, as America's genius for freedom has become her Achilles' heel.

We live in a world where strongman politics are rising, neo-liberalism has hollowed out political parties and corporations have undermined democracy. Ordinary voters feel helpless to effect change, resulting in outbreaks of populist anger, and traditional platforms for debate are losing their viability as readers source information online. In this short and vital polemic, progressive thinker and activist Billy Bragg argues that accountability is the antidote to authoritarianism and that without it, we can never truly be free.

When laws cannot be settled in state or district courts, they go to the highest law of the land: The Supreme Court. There, nine Justices appointed to lifelong terms weigh in on matters that could affect the whole country. There have been many hotly debated cases over the years....

In The Liberty Threat, James Tonkowich explores the history of Christian philosophy from the Church's infancy through the birth of America and how it influenced religious liberty. With powerful examples fresh from today's courts, Tonkowich illustrates just how the rigid separation of Church and state has created a world that is hostile to true faith. The Liberty Threat is both a chilling wake-up call and a clear call to action for Christians everywhere.

A rush-hour fender bender on a sweltering summer day is usually not a positive experience. But when Steve, depressed and miserable, literally runs into Len on an especially bad day, the stage is set for a life changing experience of the first magnitude - Steve has unwittingly placed himself in the hands of a master motivator and attitude adjuster. As Steve begins to improve his outlook (and his life!), he starts to see the ways in which Len has touched the lives of countless others.

POTUS & Faith was created with the objective of exploring what US presidents have said on the topics of God, scripture, prayer, religious freedom, and other matters of faith.