St. Louis Chapter

Professor Greg Magarian of WU Law School spoke to a group of 40 of us at a meeting at The Ethical Society.  His topic was “The Law and Politics of Religious Accommodations”. It was a privilege to have a real expert to explain the ins and outs of RFRA, its history and weaponization. Professor Magarian teaches and writes about U.S. constitutional law, with emphasis on the freedom of expression. His first book, “Managed Speech: The Roberts Court’s First Amendment”, was published in 2017 by Oxford University Press.
Presentations drawing on the talented faculties of local universities have been quite with our members, and we will surely do more of that.  Members are welcome to suggest speakers: mail prez@stlau.org

AU members in the St. Louis region were  invited by mail to our annual Holiday Party on January 2, 2020. It was an opportunity for members to meet the Board, convey their ideas about future programs, and volunteer for activities. A generous Board member generously provided the venue.  Hope you were there – if not, next year!

Our annual picnic at the South Shelter of Shaw Park in Clayton on Sunday, September 15, was a big, hot success! Our distinguished speaker was Ken Warren, Professor of Political Science at St. Louis University, who spoke about the 2020 election: “Religion and Politics, 2020: Russians Aren’t the Only Threat!”. President of The Warren Poll, he has polled for the media, government, private clients and politicians throughout America and has served as a political analyst for local, national, and international media for more than 30 years.He has appeared in The New York Times, The London Times, The Wall Street Journal and the New Republic, and on ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN,FOX, MSNBC, PBS, CBC, BBC, NPR, and on numerous foreign print and electronic media outlets in Europe, the Middle East, Far East, and Australia.

Only a large handful of us went to see the documentary “Hail Satan?” at the Tivoli Theater on Saturday, May 18. Afterward, some of us went over to Blueberry Hill to share our reactions to this unusual film.  None of us wee previously knowledgeable about the Satanic Temple, whose activities raise serious questions about the separation of church and state, and especially the support for religion by installation of monuments to the Ten Commandments on public land.  Try comparing the theological tenets of the Ten Commandments to the Tenets of the Satanic Temple.  Which would you prefer to endorse by the government? This is a provocative movie, and we may try to arrange to show it at a Movie Night when it is no longer being shown commercially.

We had a booth at this year’s Earth Days celebration, Saturday and Sunday, April 27 and 28 at the Forest Park lower MUNY entrance.  Many people came by to say hello, encourage us, and sign up for our mailing list.

A sizable crowd enjoyed a lecture by UMSL Dean and History Professor Andrew Kersten at the Ethical Society on the evening of February 7. He is author of the recent book, “Clarence Darrow: American Iconoclast”.