Center for Law and Religion at St. John's University School of Law

09/09/2026

While attending the biennial ICLARS (International Consortium for Law and Religion Studies) conference in Palermo last week, Center Director Mark Movsesian recorded a new Legal Spirits Short Take inspired by Frederick II’s tomb in Palermo Cathedral.

Medieval Sicily was a major theater in the long struggle between popes and secular rulers over the boundaries of spiritual and temporal authority, including disputes over bishops and church governance. Frederick II—Holy Roman Emperor, King of Sicily, and the famous “Stupor Mundi”—was deeply involved in that conflict. The episode asks what this history can tell us about a church-state contest that never wholly disappears.

Be sure to listen to A Short Take on a Tomb in Sicily and a Never-Ending Contest: https://lawandreligionforum.org/2026/09/09/legal-spirits-082-a-short-take-on-a-tomb-in-sicily-and-a-never-ending-contest/

09/07/2026

Be sure to check out our website for the latest important law-and-religion news stories from around the web!

09/03/2026

Center Director Mark Movsesian spoke on the Establishment Clause this week at the biennial meeting of the International Consortium of Law and Religion Studies in Palermo.

08/31/2026

New episode of Legal Spirits: Center Director Mark Movsesian speaks with Professor Arman Tatoyan of the American University of Armenia about a significant church-state crisis unfolding in Armenia.

The dispute raises important questions under the European Convention on Human Rights and the principle of church autonomy: How far may civil courts go in reviewing a religious community’s decisions about its own leaders? Can even a temporary court order, backed by criminal enforcement, become a serious burden on religious freedom?

Professors Movsesian and Tatoyan also compare the European approach with U.S. church-autonomy doctrine and consider why the controversy matters well beyond Armenia.

Listen here: https://lawandreligionforum.org/2026/08/31/legal-spirits-081-who-chooses-the-bishops-armenias-church-state-crisis/

08/31/2026

Be sure to check out the latest Around the Web collection of law and religion news stories on our website!

08/24/2026

In AtW: the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court barred the city of Quincy from installing two religious statues on the façade of a new public safety building, the FBI released its 2025 Reported Crime Statistics, showing a 7% overall decrease in hate crimes in 2025 as compared to the year before, and more.

Here are some important law-and-religion news stories from around the web:

07/29/2026

New from Legal Spirits: Center Director Mark Movsesian discusses a lawsuit by Catholic healthcare providers challenging New York’s Medical Aid in Dying Act.

The plaintiffs argue that the law will require them to counsel patients about medically assisted su***de, even though their religious commitments prohibit them from participating in the practice.

The litigation is at a very early stage, and New York has not yet responded. But assuming the law operates as the plaintiffs allege, the case raises significant questions under the Free Exercise Clause.

Watch the clip and listen to the full episode: https://lawandreligionforum.org/2026/07/29/legal-spirits-080-a-short-take-on-religious-objections-to-new-yorks-assisted-su***de-law/

06/29/2026

Center Director Mark Movsesian takes on the controversy that erupted when a Brooklyn coffee shop refused to serve Rep. Dan Goldman because of his views on Israel. Illegal discrimination? And should ordinary commerce be a space for political combat. Listen in: https://lawandreligionforum.org/2026/06/29/legal-spirits-079-a-short-take-on-coffee-shops-and-political-combat/

06/11/2026

When government classifies religion, even for ordinary administrative reasons, the classifications can become contested. A new Legal Spirits short take looks at the recent DOD controversy over religious affiliation codes and the limits of neutrality in a diverse society. Full episode here:
https://lawandreligionforum.org/2026/06/11/legal-spirits-078-a-short-take-on-religion-in-the-military/

06/11/2026

New from Legal Spirits: In this short take, Mark Movsesian discusses the recent controversy over the Defense Department’s religious affiliation codes for service members.

The initial list designated many groups as “Christian,” but not the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After objections, DOD revised the list to remove the Christian designation altogether.

The episode explores what the controversy reveals about religious classification, government neutrality, and the challenges of liberal pluralism in a religiously diverse society.

Listen here:

The Defense Department recently created a controversy by revising its list of religious affiliation codes for service members and failing to designate the LDS Church as Christian. After objections, DOD removed the Christian designation from the list altogether. In this Legal Spirits Short Take, Cent...