A lawsuit is an action or proceeding in a Civil Court. This term is used for a suit or action between two private parties in a court of law.
Specifically, a lawsuit is a legal action started by a plaintiff against a defendant based on a complaint that the defendant failed to perform a legal duty which resulted in harm to the plaintiff.
See also: Atheist lawsuits and Atheists and conflict resolution
Atheist organizations in the Western World are litigious. Often they use ligitation to restrict the degree of religious freedom in a society (see: Atheist lawsuits and restrictions to religious freedom.)
The Freedom From Atheism Foundation has a webpage on their website entitled "Ongoing Lawsuits".[1] The American Atheists has a webpage on their website entitled "Legal sucesses".[2] The Center for Inquiry engaged in lawsuits related to faith based initiatives concerning prison ministry.[3][4][5][6]
In June 2014, given the focus of atheist organizations on lawsuits, Sikivu Hutchinson wrote in the Washington Post that atheist organizations generally focus on church/state separation and creationism issues and not the concerns the less affluent African-American population faces.[7] Hutchinson also mentioned that church organizations do offer significant help to poor African-Americans.[7] See also: Atheism and charity and Western atheism and race
See: Atheist lawsuits against other atheists
See also: Atheist hospitals
Madalyn Murray O'Hair, the founder of American Atheists organization declared concerning hospitals: "An atheist believes that a hospital should be built instead of a church.".[9]
Neither Madalyn Murray O’Hair nor the American Atheists organization ever built a hospital.
The article My mother: the most hated woman in America: Interview with William J. Murray declares:
“ | In 1979, William had an idea to help get rid of his mother’s reputation as the most hated woman in America.
He told her of a hospital which desperately needed new equipment. He suggested she buy the equipment and put a plaque on it saying, ‘A gift from Madalyn Murray O’Hair—atheist.’ ‘I told her we’d call a news conference and get the story publicized all over the United States. Then people would say she’s not such a bad old gal after all.’ She fumed. ‘She said, “Why would I want to take perfectly good money and use it to buy hospital equipment? I could use that money to file lawsuits to bar pastors, priests and rabbis from being allowed to go into hospitals.”’[10] |
” |
Taylor Barkley in his article An Atheist’s Perspective on Christian Engagement in the World wrote:
“ | A Christian believes that a hospital and a church should be built. A Christian believes that deeds must be done and prayers said. A Christian strives for involvement in life and has nothing to fear in death. He wants disease conquered, poverty vanished, and war eliminated and works with Christ to accomplish those goals, knowing that they will be accomplished one day.[11] | ” |
Categories: [Law] [Legal Terms]