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The Pew-Templeton Global Religious Futures project analyzes religious change and its impact on societies around the world.

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INTERVIEW September 30, 2008
Fundamental Dignity at Every Stage of Life: An Argument Against Abortion Rights Featuring the Rev. J. Daniel Mindling
To explore the case against abortion rights, the Pew Forum turns to the Rev. J. Daniel Mindling, a professor of moral philosophy and academic dean at Mount St. Mary's Seminary in Emmetsburg, Md.
INTERVIEW September 19, 2008
Pastors To Protest IRS Rules on Political Advocacy
On Sept. 28, pastors from 20 states will give politically based sermons from the pulpit as part of a protest organized by the Alliance Defense Fund, a conservative legal-advocacy group. The protest will challenge an Internal Revenue Code restriction that limits the political activities of charitable organizations
ANALYSIS August 28, 2008
On Ceremonial Occasions, May the Government Invoke a Deity?
Opponents of these religious invocations say such proclamations promote religion and thus violate the First Amendment's Establishment Clause, which prohibits all laws "respecting an establishment of religion."
INTERVIEW July 24, 2008
The Blaine Game: Controversy Over the Blaine Amendments and Public Funding of Religion
More than two-thirds of states have constitutional provisions restricting state aid to religious organizations; these state constitutional provisions are collectively known as the Blaine Amendments.
INTERVIEW July 3, 2008
Accommodating Faith in the Military
Over the past few years, there have been several controversies over religion's role in the military. Most recently, students and staff at the U.S. Naval Academy and West Point have complained...
EVENT TRANSCRIPT June 23, 2008
Hein, One Year Later: The Future of Church-State Litigation
One year later, how have courts interpreted Hein? How will Hein affect the future direction of lawsuits involving the funding of religion?
INTERVIEW June 12, 2008
Courts Will Decide Church Property Disputes
 The Falls Church, where George Washington worshipped, is one of 11 Virginia congregations to sever ties with the Episcopal Church, which has sued for property rights.
INTERVIEW April 4, 2008
The Supreme Court Considers New Case on Capital Punishment
On April 16, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a case challenging the constitutionality of a Louisiana statute that allows for the death penalty in cases involving child rape.
ANALYSIS April 1, 2008
An Overview of the Same-Sex Marriage Debate
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ignited a nationwide debate in late 2003 when it ruled that the state must allow gay and lesbian couples to marry. Almost overnight, same-sex marriage became a major national issue, pitting religious and social conservatives against gay-rights advocates and their allies.
ANALYSIS April 1, 2008
The Constitutional Dimensions of the Same-Sex Marriage Debate: 2008
On Nov. 4, 2008, California voters passed Proposition 8, amending the state's constitution to prohibit same-sex marriage. The vote, which was significant enough to make national headlines on a historic Election Day, was the latest round in a long battle involving the California legislature, judiciary and voters.
ANALYSIS March 27, 2008
A Portrait of American Catholics on the Eve of Pope Benedict's Visit to the U.S.
When Pope Benedict XVI arrives in the United States on April 15, he will find a Catholic Church that is undergoing rapid ethnic and demographic changes, and whose flock is quite diverse both in their religious practices and levels of commitment, as well as in their social and political views.
ANALYSIS March 7, 2008
Politics and the Pulpit 2008
A guide to the Internal Revenue Code restrictions on the political activity of religious organizations. 
ANALYSIS January 17, 2008
From Roe to Stenberg: A History of Key Abortion Rulings by the Supreme Court
Reproductive issues were largely a private affair early in American history. Although abortion was deemed illegal under English common law, the state rarely took any interest in prosecuting those cases that became public.
ANALYSIS December 19, 2007
An Impassioned Debate: An Overview of the Death Penalty in America
Few public policy issues have inflamed passions as consistently and as strongly as the debate over capital punishment. Religious communities have been deeply involved on both sides of the issue, drawing on teachings and traditions that define justice and the dignity of human life.
EVENT TRANSCRIPT December 3, 2007
Religion and Secularism: The American Experience
Watch more event video on the multimedia page. More from the December 2007 Faith Angle Conference Religious Literacy: What Every American Should Know The Religion Factor in the 2008 Election More: Research, news, blogs Some of the nation's leadin...
INTERVIEW October 24, 2007
The Free Exercise Clause and the Parameters of Religious Liberty
The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees that the federal government will respect the "free exercise" of religion. But the precise meaning of "free exercise" and exactly what constitutes an infringement of this right are not clear-cut.
ANALYSIS October 24, 2007
A Delicate Balance: The Free Exercise Clause and the Supreme Court
When Americans speak of their most cherished liberties, freedom of worship often tops the list. But this freedom is not absolute. Indeed, throughout most of the nation's history, religious practices have often been subordinated to a variety of government laws and regulations.
INTERVIEW October 3, 2007
A Progressive Argument Against the Legalization of Physician-Assisted Suicide
The debate over physician-assisted suicide is often portrayed as a battle between social or religious conservatives who oppose the practice and liberals or progressives who support it. But not everyone fits neatly into this paradigm.
INTERVIEW June 27, 2007
From the Ten Commandments to Christmas Trees: Public Religious Displays and the Courts
In recent decades, a growing number of citizens and civil liberties groups have sued towns, cities and states over religious symbols in the public square, arguing that these displays should be removed because they violate the First Amendment's prohibition on government establishment of religion.
ANALYSIS June 27, 2007
Religious Displays and the Courts
Each year as the winter holidays approach, Americans across the country debate the appropriateness of the government sponsoring, or even permitting, the display of Christmas nativity scenes, Hanukkah menorahs and other religious holiday symbols on public property.
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