Tag: Ohio

June 11, 2013

Ohio Representative Introduces Law To Give Public School Students Credit For Religious Study

official photo of Ohio Representative Bill Patmon (D-10)
Ohio Representative Bill Patmon (D-10) wants to give credit for religious study during school time

Ohio House Bill 171, introduced by Representative Bill Patmon (D-10), would allow students to receive credit for studying religion during what is called release time. If passed, Ohio would be the second state to give credit for religious study during the school day. It’s too bad that Rep. Patmon reasons for the law are based on false assumptions and it looks like just an attempt to subvert court decisions that keep church and state separate in public schools.

Here is the text for the proposed law as introduced on May 21st 2013:

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May 1, 2013

Should Religious Liberty Be Used As An Excuse To Hurt People?

image of Bishop Frederick Campbell leader of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Columbus Ohio
Bishop Frederick Campbell leader of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Columbus Ohio

The major conflict in human rights is to balance the rights of all people. You can do whatever you want with your life as long as that action doesn’t hurt others (physically or mentally) and conforms with restrictions from current laws. The basic precept is your rights stop at your neighbors door step. In church and state issues the challenge is to balance religious freedom with the rights set in the US Bill of Rights. In the case of a veteran teacher fired from a Catholic school because it became public she had a same-sex spouse, how far does religious liberty extend.

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March 26, 2013

How Far Should The State Accommodate Religious Beliefs?

image showing an Amish Buggy on a road with the slow moving trangle on the back

During the debate over the government requiring employers to provide coverage for birth control, we’ve heard one argument, false as it is, that in doing so would infringe on religious beliefs. Although that isn’t a valid argument it does bring up the question about how far does a state go to accommodate religious beliefs? The real debate is where is that line between the public good and a person’s beliefs. When can that line be crossed? The simple answer is the line can be crossed when the religious beliefs might harm other people like those needing access to birth control.

Here is an example of protests from the Catholic church about the birth control mandate:

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March 4, 2013

Freshwater Attempts To Use Appeal To Reopen Creationism Debate

screencap of Ohio Supreme Court Justice Paul Pfeifer
Ohio Supreme Court Justice Paul Pfeifer during oral arguments

Last Wednesday, John Freshwater, the Mount Vernon middle school teacher fired for proselytizing to his science classes then refusing to stop doing it when he was warned, had his appeal heard before the Ohio Supreme Court. His lawyer attempted to use a routine employment appeal to reopen the debate on teaching creationism in the public schools. Although rulings aren’t signaled based on the questioning during the hearing, it was clear the school attorney, David Smith, got the aggressive part of the questioning.

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February 22, 2013

Ohio Supreme Court To Hear Proselytizing Teacher Case On Wednesday

image of Proselytizing Ohio teacher John Freshwater
Proselytizing Ohio teacher John Freshwater

The saga of proselytizing teacher and accused child abuser John Freshwater from Mount Vernon Ohio will get another hearing by the Ohio State Supreme Court on Wednesday February 27th. He is appealing his termination from the Mount Vernon school district after many warnings, accusations of child abuse, and a lengthy investigation and school board hearing. Freshwater previously lost in the court of appeals and in Federal court.

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July 6, 2012

Ohio Teacher Fired For Proselytizing To Get Hearing In Ohio Supreme Court

image of Proselytizing Ohio teacher John Freshwater
Proselytizing Ohio teacher John Freshwater

John Freshwater, the Mount Vernon Ohio public school science teacher who was fired for proselytizing to his students will get a hearing on an appeal in the Ohio Supreme Court. I’ve been following this story since Freshwater burned his first cross in a student in 2008. He has lost in every court yet this case will not go away.

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