Archived Announcements

• The Sacramento Chapter of Americans United for Separation of Church and State will meet Monday, May 10, at 7:00 p.m. at the SMUD Customer Service Center, 6301 S Street, Sacramento, 95819, in Forestview Room # 2, first floor. Join us at our Annual Meeting to plan events and activities for the coming year. We hope to see you there! Please RSVP to president@au-sac.org. We welcome your participation. For more information please contact president@au-sac.org
  
  

• You are invited to attend a series on liberty of conscience at the Woodside SDA Church in Sacramento. Address: 3300 Eastern Avenue, Sacramento, CA 95821

  
  
  

  February 28, 4pm	Speaker: Leigh Johnsen, PhD	Topic: Early American Origins of Church-State Separation	In contrast what many voices at present claim, longstanding and well-known historical evidence from the colonial and revolutionary periods of American history indicate that the roots of church-state separation are deep and enduring in American culture and history.
  March 6, 4pm	Speaker: Dr. Alan Brownstein	Topic: Church-State Constitutional Issues	Dr. Brownstein, Professor of Law, UC Davis, is a renowned Constitutional Professor of Law. He has given expert testimony before Legislatures and Courts in church-state issues. Most recently he testified on behalf of KASK, 91.5 FM, a Vacaville SDA radio station, which has been denied a building permit. Dr. Brownstein will discuss current constitutional church-state issues.
  March 13, 4pm	Speaker: Dr. Brad Newton	Topic: Church-State Issues at the Legislature	Dr. Newton is the liaison between the SDA Church and the California Legislature. He will present current bills before the Legislature which impact church and state.

  
  
  
• The Sacramento Chapter of Americans United for Separation of Church and State will meet Monday, January 12, at 7:00 p.m. at the SMUD Customer Service Center, 6301 S Street, Sacramento, 95819. This is a chapter planning meeting.  We welcome your participation. For more information please contact president@au-sac.org
  
  
• AU Sacramento's Religious Outreach Committee has arranged a 4-week series to discuss the history, issues, and interpretations of the principle of separation of church and state at St. Mark's United Methodist Church, 2391 Saint Marks Way, Sacramento. The second session is Sunday, November 9, 9:30-10:45 a.m. and features Dr. Leigh Johnsen, scholar of religious studies, will speak on the early American origins of church-state separation.
  
  Future sessions will be held Sunday mornings in November and feature:
  
  • November 9: Dr. Leigh Johnsen, scholar of religious studies, will speak on Isaac Backus and religious liberty in the 19th Century
  
  
  • November 16: Alan Brownstein, Professor of Constitutional Law at University of California, Davis, will discuss the major church-state issues of the 20th Century
  
  
  • November 23: Carol Venarde, Americans United's California Legislative Liaison, will discuss faith-based initiatives and programs, executive orders and other recent developments.
  
  
• "School Prayer -- Court Decisions from the 1963 Schempp Case to Today."
  
  Tuesday, September 16, 4:00-6:00 p.m.
  Lecture Hall, McGeorge School of Law
  3200 5th Avenue, Sacramento, 95817
  
  FREE PUBLIC PROGRAM
  
  SPONSORS
  Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Sacramento Chapter
  American Constitution Society, McGeorge School of Law
  
  
  Speakers trace the history of related court rulings from the 1963 Supreme Court decision to the present.
  
  Ellery Schempp, in 1956 a 16-year-old high school student, wondered why his school had prayer and devotional Bible reading every day in violation of the U.S. Constitution. He asked the question and made history.
  Alan Brownstein, Professor of Constitutional Law at the University of California, Davis School of Law, will trace subsequent cases related to the Schempp decision.
  Christian M. Keiner, managing partner of the Sacramento office of Girard and Vinson, who won the precedent-setting Cole v. Oroville Union High School District case forbidding proselytizing graduation speech, will give a local focus.
  
  
  Directions to Lecture Hall, McGeorge School of Law:
  
  From Highway 99: When coming from either the south or the north, exit Hwy 99 at 12th Avenue. If you were driving south on Hwy 99, turn right (west) on 12th Ave. If you were driving north on Hwy 99, turn left (west) on 12th Ave. Drive west one block on 12th Ave. to Franklin Blvd. Turn right (north) on Franklin Blvd. and go about one mile to 5th Ave. Turn right (east) on 5th Ave. and go about two blocks to campus.
  Lecture Hall: The lecture hall is on the left side of 5th Ave. across from the main entrance of the campus. Park on the street or in unreserved spaces in campus lots. You can also obtain a parking permit from the Admissions Office.
  From Interstate 5: Take Business 80 east, and then take the Hwy 99 South exit. Exit Hwy 99 at the first exit, 12th Ave. (See directions from Hwy 99 South above.) From Interstate 80: At the intersection of Interstate 80 and Business 80, take Business 80 east, then take the Hwy 99 South exit. Exit Hwy 99 at the first exit, 12th Ave. (See directions from Hwy 99 South above.)
  From Highway 50: Take the Hwy 99 South exit. Exit Hwy 99 at the first exit, 12th Ave. (See directions from Hwy 99 South above.)