By Christy Barritt

University Reinstates Official with Opposing Views

The chief diversity officer at Gallaudet University in Maryland will be reinstated after being put on leave for signing a petition to put Maryland’s gay marriage law on the ballot.

The administrator, Dr. Angela McCaskill, signed a petition while at her church, but hasn’t openly spoken up about her views on gay marriage. When the university’s president learned that her employee had signed the petition, she placed McCaskill on paid leave.

After community backlash from the incident, the university changed its mind and told McCaskill she could return to her old position.

McCaskill said at a press conference, “I am dismayed that Gallaudet University is still a university of intolerance, a university that manages by intimidation, a university that allows bullying among faculty, staff, and students.”

McCaskill has requested compensation from the university for the damage it caused to her reputation.

What Church Visitors Hate

In a column for The Christian Post, Thom Rainer revealed eight things guests at churches hated.

Rainer led a church consultation company and, as one of his services, sent mystery guests to various congregations to give an honest assessment of the church. The guests were unchurched.

Some of the things visitors most hated included: being asked to introduce themselves in the worship service, a lack of guest parking, a dirty and insecure preschool area, hearing people talk in jargon, being told they were sitting in reserved seating, having no one speak to them, hearing the preacher scream from the pulpit, and having a business meeting during the worship service.

In each of those cases, the mystery church guests assured Rainer they would never return to that congregation again.

“Sex-Selective Abortion” Bill Introduced in Virginia

A Virginia legislator introduced a bill in October that will prohibit abortions for the sake of sex selection.

Republican delegate Robert G. Marshall proposed the measure. If the bill is passed, it will be considered a class 4 felony to intentionally perform an abortion knowing the abortion is based solely on the sex of the preborn child.

 “I don’t want [Virginia] to become a haven for sex-selective abortion,” Marshall said. 

The bill would also require women seeking an abortion to sign a form stating they acknowledge their doctor could be prosecuted for performing a sex-selective abortion.

If this bill is passed, Virginia will be the fifth state to enact a sex-selective abortion law.

Church Returns to Recreation Center

A church in the Atlanta, Georgia area can continue renting space from a county recreation center.

The Transformation Church of God in DeKalb County, Georgia had begun renting a meeting room in the county’s Redan Recreation Center last spring.

In May, an employee informed the church of a new policy that prohibited churches from renting its recreational facilities. The church minister asked repeatedly to see a copy of this new policy, but never saw one.

In September, the county told the church it had denied its rental application and the church could no longer rent the space. The church filed a lawsuit shortly thereafter.

The lawsuit pushed the county to review and change its policies, and the church will be able to use the recreation center again.

Christy Barritt is an award-winning author, freelance writer, and speaker living in Chesapeake, Virginia. She and her husband Scott have two sons. 
www.christybarritt.com