College Loses Religious Speech Case

The Supreme Court has decided not to hear an appeal by the University of Wisconsin in a case involving funding religious speech. A student group called Badger Catholic Inc. asked for $253,000 in funding from UW Madison's fee system which supports hundreds of student organizations. The school withheld $35,000 of the amount that was going to go for activities the University deemed “proselytizing, religious instruction and worship.” Badger Catholic sued, arguing that the decision amounted to discrimination against religious speech. The 7th Circuit Court agreed in a 2-1 decision.

Link Complaint

An atheist group is asking the state of Wisconsin to remove a link from its website to an anti-abortion group. Care Net is a faith-based ministry helping pregnant women. The Madison-based Freedom From Religion Foundation says a state link to Care Net is a state endorsement of religion, despite a disclaimer to the contrary on the site. The state Department of Administration is reviewing the complaint.

Methodist Jury: Guilty

A jury of Wisconsin United Methodist pastors has found Amy DeLong guilty of marrying a lesbian couple against church law. The vote was 13-0. However, on a 12-1 vote, she was found not guilty of a charge of being a "self-avowed practicing homosexual." The penalty could be anything from suspension to defrocking.

Day of Prayer Struck Down

A federal judge in Wisconsin says the National Day of Prayer violates the constitutional ban on government-backed religion. Judge Barbara Crabb struck down the federal statute today. Defendants in the case, President Obama and White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs will be able to exhaust their appeal before the injunction against the 1952 law that created the National Day of Prayer takes effect. The Obama administration says Obama intends to recognize this year's National Day of Prayer on May 6.

Documents Contradict Account of Abusive Priest

A priest involved with looking into accusations of sexual abuse by another priest at a Milwaukee-area school for the deaf now admits there are documents that contradict what he says happened. Thomas Brundage admits in a letter to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (read it here) that his archbishop in 1998 told him to stop the judicial process against Lawrence Murphy, a priest accused of molesting 200 deaf children. Brundage says he's sorry but his false statements were only a misunderstanding of how he remembered the events.

Vatican Dismisses Abuse Accusations

The Vatican is calling accusations it covered up the abuse of deaf children by priests "petty gossip." The remarks came in a surprise move in which a cardinal made the unusual decision to speak before Pope Benedict offered his Easter Sunday Mass. Benedict himself did not mention the scandal though the Vatican several times has recently blamed the media for creating a smear campaign. The Vaican newspaper says he's the real victim, writing that Benedict is having to endure a "despicable campaign of defamation." The New York Times reported Benedict was warned about the priest but he was not defrocked and he continued abused children even after his forced retirement. Barbara Blaine, a leader of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, said, "Victims are seeking consolation and healing and should not be insulted and told that our speaking out is petty gossip."

Vatican Knew Priest Molested 200 Deaf Boys

Some 200 deaf boys were molested by a priest who was never defrocked by the Catholic Church. The New York Times reports that Vatican officials, including Pope Benedict XVI were a part of the decision. The situation become public because of a lawsuit that revealed correspondence between Wisconsin Bishops and the future pope Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. Five men are suing the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. The letters show Ratzinger was more concerned about protecting the church from scandal than the welfare of the children. He and other officials did not alert the authorities or even discipline the priests involved in sexual abuse while he served as the Vatican’s chief doctrinal enforcer.

American priest Lawrence C. Murphy served at Wisconsin's St. John’s School for the Deaf from 1950 to 1974. He first taught classes and became effective at raising money for deaf causes and was eventually promoted to run the school in 1963 - even though church officials already knew he sexually abused children.

A group of deaf former students spent decades trying to get something changed, even handing out fliers outside the Milwaukee cathedral. Eventually, an internal investigation of Murphy showed he was not remorseful and he appealed to Ratzinger for leniency. Murphy died at the age of 72, buried in his priestly garments.

Bible controversy at Wisconsin School

A high school student in Milwaukee says he was punished for bringing Bible to class. WTMJ-TV reports.

Missionaries Survive Earthquake

Missionaries sent by a Wisconsin church survived the Haiti earthquake. WITI-TV in Milwaukee reports.

Dead Sea Scrolls

The Dead Sea Scrolls are coming to Milwaukee. WTMJ-TV reports.

Controversial Contraceptive Ads

The group behind new radio and TV ads are being accused of misleading Catholics. WLUK-TV in Green Bay reports.

Abortion Video

An activist group is accusing Planned Parenthood of lying about what it does - and the group claims to have a video to support the claim. WTMJ-TV in Milwaukee reports.

Abortion Ad Rejected

A Wisconsin student newspaper is rejecting anti-abortion ads. Student editors at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh’s Advance-Titan say the advertisement from the Human Life Alliance as too controversial. The ad includes information about abortion, its side effects, contraception, the development of a pre-born child and adoption. Pro-Life Wisconsin accuses the paper of censorship, saying the decision shows bias.

Faith-Healing Conviction

A Wisconsin jury convicted Leilani Neumann of reckless homicide because she prayed for her daughter’s healing instead of getting medical treatment for the 11-year-old’s diabetes. She could get 25 years behind bars but plans an appeal. Her husband will go on trial for the same crime later this summer. WSAW-TV has this video report.

Faith Healing Trial

The trial is underway for a woman accused of praying over her dying daughter rather than taking her to the doctor. A Wisconsin jury will decide whether Leilani Neumann should have had her daughter’s diabetes diagnosed. Neumann says her family believes the Bible for her daughter’s healing. Her husband also faces charges and his trial will start later this summer. Neumann’s lawyer has asked that Texas faith healer Thurman Scrivner be allowed to testify that faith healing is a legitimate way to cure illness.

Burger King Incident

A Wisconsin pastor will serve a year of probation after a Burger King confrontation two years ago. David Fogderud was also handed 100 hours of community service. Police arrested the pastor of The Overflowing Cup Total Life Center in Beloit, Wisconsin after teenage boys complained he harassed them. Fogderud said he only tried to witness to them and tell them about a Christian rock concert at the church. He was convicted of obstructing an officer. After he left the scene, officers stopped his car and say he was uncooperative. But Fogderud said they used excessive force on him.

Pastor Fined for Illustration

A pastor in Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin got in trouble for an sermon illustration. John Putnam had a member fire a steel-tipped practice arrow across the front of the congregation at Pentecostals of Sheboygan County. One member stood to complain about it before the arrow was even fired. He was told to sit down and be quiet. When he complained again, Putnam asked the man to leave. Police gave the pastor and the man who shot the arrow several citations. Each will pay more than $100 in fines. Putnam was talking about spiritual armor: The helmet of salvation, the sword of the spirit and the belt of truth.

2nd Trimester Abortions

The University of Wisconsin plans to give women second-trimester abortions (between 13 and 22 weeks) at the Madison Surgery Center in Madison. All that’s needed is the Center’s board of trustees to approve the move later this month.

A conservative Christian legal group is protesting the move. The Alliance Defense Fund questions the plan's legallity because a state law prohibits state or federal money from being used to pay doctors or clinics to perform abortions.

The Center says insurance and the patients will foot the bill for the abortions and not the state.

Ordination of Gay Man Move Forward

The Presbyterian Church, USA is allowing a gay man to enter the final stages of ordination. John Knox Presbytery (covering parts of Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin) voted to let Scott Anderson more forward in his bid for ordination. The Princeton Theological Seminary graduate was ordained by Sacramento Presbytery in 1983. But when two members of Sacramento’s Bethany Presbyterian Church publically announced he was gay, Anderson set aside his ordination. He worked for the Northern California Council of Churches for more than a decade and now leads the Wisconsin Council of Churches. A final vote on his candidacy will take place a year from now.

Obama Apologizes for Slip

Barak Obama apologized shortly after attending the First Lutheran Church in Eau Claire, Wisconsin for a comment he made in front of the city's town hall. The Illinois Senator told the audience of several hundred, "If we can spend $10 to $12 billion a month in Iraq, we sure as HELL can pay $10 to $12 million billion dollars right here in the United States." He quickly apologized for using the word “hell”. At the service Obama attended, pastor John Kerr spoke shortly about humility.