Free Republic

California Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed legislation Sunday that could have forced churches, Christian schools and pro-life organizations to employ abortion supporters. California Assembly Bill 569 would have prohibited employers from requiring their employees to follow a moral code of conduct, such as no sex outside of marriage and no abortions. It also would have prohibited employers from disciplining or firing employees for actions that violate the mission or beliefs of the group. The bill did not provide any exceptions for employers, meaning pro-life organizations, churches, religious schools and faith-based groups could have been forced to keep on employees whose actions...

FULL TITLE: 'I was extremely shocked and excited': Transgender teen kicked out of Christian school over his gender identity is voted homecoming king at his new high school A transgender Maine teen who said he was kicked out of his former high school for his gender identity has been named homecoming king at his new school. Stiles Zuchlag was announced as king Friday evening during halftime at Noble High School's homecoming football game. 'My heart kind of dropped I was extremely shocked and excited I felt like crying - it was the most surreal thing that's ever happened to me...

FULL TITLE: Student, 18, is suspended for two days and barred from her Christian high school's graduation ceremony because she is PREGNANT A high school senior will not be allowed to participate in her high school's graduation ceremony because she is pregnant. Maddi Runkles, 18, from Boonsboro, Maryland, goes to Heritage Academy, a small private Christian school in Hagerstown. She discovered she was pregnant in January, just a few days after receiving a college acceptance letter, according to the New York Times. But after she announced her pregnancy, Runkles was suspended for two days. School officials also removed the 18-year-old...

NATCHEZ, Miss. —A first-grade teacher at Adams County Christian School in Natchez has been arrested, police said. Stephanie Adams, 39, was arrested Monday and charged with one count of gratification of lust with a minor, police said.

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. - A decade-old allegation accusing a local teacher is being re-investigated after the teacher was arrested for similar charges. Matthew Graziotti, who works at the Warner Christian Academy in South Daytona, was arrested on Monday for producing and distributing child porn. Graziotti had been accused of misconduct with minor children in 2004, according to Edgewater police, but no evidence was discovered at that time. With this new arrest, the past allegation is being re-investigated, police told Local 6.

SOUTH DAYTONA, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - A teacher at Warner Christian Academy in South Daytona has been placed on unpaid administrative suspension pending an investigation into allegations of possession and distribution of child pornography. Matthew C. Graziotti,42, of Edgewater, was arrested on Monday following a joint investigation by the FBI, the Edgewater Police Department and the Volusia County Sheriff's Office. According to a criminal complaint, Graziotti distributed 141 images and 6 videos depicting the sexual abuse and exploitation of children to an FBI agent, who was acting in an undercover capacity. During the execution of a search warrant, agents...

CHINA GROVE State records indicate Rowan County has a drug problem. This week, residents learned that it extends to one of its best schools. Four faculty members from Bostian Elementary were arrested Tuesday and accused of being part of a ring that illegally obtained thousands of doses of the painkiller hydrocodone. China Grove police and state investigators say family physician Orrin Walker unlawfully wrote hundreds of prescriptions that were filled by his wife, Abby, her co-workers and friends. Orrin Walker, 48, operated Main Street Family Practice. Abby Walker, 44, was a second-grade teacher at Bostian. Both were charged with trafficking...

OAKLAND, Calif. — A gunman opened fire at a Christian university in California Monday, killing at least six people and wounding three more, authorities said. Police say they have a suspect in custody.

Iranian-backed TV broadcasts US Koran desecrations, inflames deadly Kashmir riots; 15 dead The Iranians seized on reports of Koran burnings near Ground Zero and elsewhere in the U.S. to fan deadly riots Monday in mostly-Muslim Kashmir. Indian forces killed more than a dozen people and wounded scores more rampaging rioters, who chanted "Down with Koran desecrators" as they attacked a Christian school in one town and government buildings in other cities. They also chanted "Down with America" and "Down with Israel," cries rarely heard in Kashmir where Muslim rebels have long waged a bloody rebellion against Indian rule. U.S. Ambassador...

Muslim groups in Thalassery have been protesting the Church-managed San Jos Metropolitan School’s policy for over a year. The school allows students to wear headscarves to campus but wants them to take them off once they reach the classroom. Principal Sister Rosemary said the school cannot agree to the headscarf demand as it would make the school uniform’s dress code meaningless. “We will not accept the demand. It is not the sole decision of the management; it is also the decision of the Parent-Teacher Association,” Some 40 percent of 1,050 students in the co-educational school are Muslims. Hindus form some...

A group of students at Trinity University is lobbying trustees to drop a reference to “Our Lord” on their diplomas, arguing it does not respect the diversity of religions on campus. “A diploma is a very personal item, and people want to proudly display it in their offices and homes,” said Sidra Qureshi, president of Trinity Diversity Connection. “By having the phrase ‘In the Year of Our Lord,' it is directly referencing Jesus Christ, and not everyone believes in Jesus Christ.” Qureshi, who is Muslim, has led the charge to tweak the wording, winning support from student government and a...

"3 accused of Taiping church-school arson acts plead not guilty" SNIPPET: "TAIPING, Feb 8 — Three men pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court here today to causing mischief by fire at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Convent and the All Saints Church on Jan 10. Andidi Rosidi, 22, Abdul Fattah Shaharuddin, 29, and Muhamad Ab. Wahab, 20, all self-employed and from Kamunting, were produced in the Magistrate’s Court last Tuesday but no plea was recorded then because the Sessions Court judge was on leave and they were not represented. Andidi is charged with committing the offence at SMK Convent in...

A MUSLIM student teacher has labelled a Christian school in Wyndham discriminatory for refusing her a position based on her religion. But Heathdale Christian College is standing by its decision, saying that as a faith-based school it expects its teachers, including student ones, to support its Christian perspective. Mother-of-two Rachida Dahlal, 35, has complained to the Equal Opportunity Commission on the grounds of discrimination, prejudice and unequal employment opportunities. The Hoppers Crossing college where she wanted to do placement said it would not have been in its, or Mrs Dahlal’s, best interests. Mrs Dahlal said on-the-job training was a requirement...

Note: The following blog entry is a quote: http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/13165.htm Graffiti Praising Hizbullah On Walls Of Christian School In Lebanon Unknown persons have written graffiti praising Hizbullah on the walls of the Christian school in the Christian city of 'Amshit in the Jabil region. Among the slogans were "There is no victory but Nasrallah's," "there is no messiah but Nasrallah," and "Jabil and Keserwan [Christian regions in Lebanon] belong to the Muslims." It was also reported that pupils entering the school found that a cross that had hung on the wall lying broken on ground, and that it had been replaced...

U.S. Wary Of Small Boat Terrorism As boating season approaches, the Bush administration wants to enlist America's 80 million recreational boaters to help reduce the chances that a small boat could deliver a nuclear or radiological bomb somewhere along the 95,000 miles of U.S. coastline and inland waterways. According to an April 23 intelligence assessment obtained by The Associated Press, "The use of a small boat as a weapon is likely to remain al Qaeda's weapon of choice in the maritime environment, given its ease in arming and deploying, low cost, and record of success." While the United States...

A California judge has ruled that Christian schools can set standards for behavior for their students, and impose penalties if they are not met. The decision comes from Riverside County Superior Court Judge Gloria Trask, who found "no triable issues" on claims that a Christian school discriminated against two girls because of their perceived sexual orientation, according to a report in the North County Times. Trask recently dismissed the claims made against California Lutheran High School in Wildomar by the two girls and their parents. The case developed in 2005 when the girls, members of the junior class, were expelled...

Breaking NewsDevice Explodes On Merseyside Updated: 18:28, Friday September 21, 2007 A device has exploded at a school in Liverpool, according to Merseyside police. It went off under a car outside St Edward's, a Catholic school in the Sandfield Park area of West Derby. Sky News correspondent Mike McCarthy said roads near the school had been blocked off by police. Inspector Michael O'Callaghan said: "There was an explosion under a car at the school this afternoon." "What caused the explosion and the reasons behind it we are investigating. "Nobody has been injured and there has been no collateral damage," he...

Christian Schools’ Achilles HeelIt turns out that Christian schools have their problems too. But even these drawbacks may result from too much reliance on the methods and texts of public schools. “So why do Christian schools not use Christian books?” the Mel Gabler’s Educational Research Analysts Newsletter asks. “Often, they say, because public school texts teach superior critical thinking skills.” “Yet about 75 % of public school edition answers to ‘critical thinking’ student text questions are verbatim quotes from the student text narrative.” The Gablers’ researchers are based in Longview, Texas, in a state considered make or break for textbook...

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- A student's lawsuit alleging he was expelled from his Christian high school after telling a chaplain he is gay is headed for the state's Supreme Court. A divided 4th District Court of Appeal asked the high court Wednesday to decide if the chaplain should have protected Jeffrey Woodard's confidentiality during the 2003 conversation. Whether Woodard and his mother, Carol Gload, can seek damages from Jupiter Christian School depends on whether the school chaplain in whom he confided can be sued for inflicting emotional distress, according to an opinion written by Judge Melanie May. The...

A case is set to begin in Birmingham federal court next month for a woman who is suing a Christian school that fired her after administrators learned she was unmarried and pregnant. Tesana Lewis filed suit against Covenant Classical School of Trace Crossings, saying she was unfairly fired. The school contends her unwed pregnancy went against the values and religious principles taught there. Lewis' suit says she was hired at the school on December 6, 2003, where she was to help teach 12- to 20-month- olds. She was fired four days later. Lawyers for the private religious school in Hoover...