Federal appellate judges moved to preserve a historic county seal that features a cross, signaling a shift away from anti-religious precedent. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in its unanimous opinion that the cross on the Lehigh County, Pa., seal does not establish a state religion in violation of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The cross represents the county’s early German settlers who fled persecution in their homeland seeking religious freedom in America.

Blaine Adamson is headed to the Kentucky Supreme Court to defend his right to decline to print T-shirts for a gay pride festival in Lexington, Ky. The festival happened in 2012. Court arguments are scheduled for Aug. 23.

A federal court decision Thursday about a Pennsylvania county’s seal bodes well for religious symbols in public settings throughout the country. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Lehigh County can keep the Latin cross on its seal because it has historical and cultural significance beyond its meaning as a Christian symbol. The 3rd Circuit judges followed a new precedent set by the U.S. Supreme Court this summer in the case of the Bladensburg cross, a 40-foot World War I monument in Maryland that a group of atheists wanted taken down.

When Chinese officials claimed in February 2018 that reeducation camps for Uighurs in Xinjiang did not exist, German researcher Adrian Zenz decided to prove them wrong. He started digging through Chinese government data on the internet—construction bids, hiring ads, local budgets—and found evidence that the government had built massive reeducation camps that held 1 million Uighurs. Zenz, a Christian, views his research as a way to serve the voiceless, including Uighurs who see China eradicating their language and culture. Here are edited excerpts of our interview.

Two Michigan conservatives are challenging a local law that could force them to do political consulting for candidates and organizations with which they disagree.

Divine inspiration isn’t often highlighted in American diplomacy. Yet in his office Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has a framed index card with words from Psalm 126: “The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.” 

A California state court has sided with a community college sociology professor fired for exposing his students to conservative perspectives on marriage, gender roles, and sexual orientation.