The case involves several parcels of blighted land in North Philadelphia that the city Redevelopment Authority hopes to acquire for $860,250. The Authority then plans to give this property away by selling it for nominal value to Hope Partnership. The Redevelopment Authority claims that such a transfer is permissible because it has simply shown neutrality to Hope Partnership, treating it like any other potential redeveloper of the site. Hope Partnership claims that it is not a religious school because it is non-denominational and will admit students without regard to race, creed, color, religion or ethnicity.

JSPAN's brief urges the Court to reject these claims, noting that Hope Partnership is an entity created by two religious orders whose own documents show that it intends to operate a school based on the "Nativity Model" which already includes three schools opened by the Society of the Holy Child Jesus - the Nativity Jesuit Middle School in Milwaukee and the Mother Seton and St. Ignatius Loyola Academies in Baltimore. The very names of those schools, despite protestations that they are non-denominational, underscore the sectarian nature of the endeavor, particularly since its non-denominational disclaimer is preceded by the statement that the Nativity Model "assumes the presence of God." Moreover, the Nativity Model has been "inspired" by "Judeo-Christian values," and "include[s] a respect for the dignity and potential of each person. . . within the family of God." According to the JSPAN brief, assuming the presence of God is a religious proposition regardless of whether that religious proposition is given a recognized religious label.

JSPAN's interest in this case rests in preventing erosion of the principle of separation of Church and State. A decision to approve the taking of this land would be a dangerous step in that direction, because it would authorize what amounts to a direct monetary grant to a sectarian school. It would also threaten to inject into the condemnation process the kind of divisive sectarian competition and strife that the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment was designed to prevent. It would encourage various avowedly religious organizations to compete for governmental assets for use in propagating their faith.

JSPAN's brief was authored by Judah Labovitz, with assistance from Ted Mann and Barry Ungar, all of whom are members of the JSPAN Board. The Anti-Defamation League also joined in the brief. A decision in this case is not expected for some months.

To review a copy of the JSPAN amicus brief, click here.

Mr. Sneddon told the audience that Medicare Part D brought about a system that is dysfunctional. Currently, there is a large prescription drug coverage gap where seniors must pay 100% of the cost. Brian Gralnick, JSPAN Board member and moderator for the events, commented that this 'doughtnut hole' is "is so big Homer Simpson can't eat it."

Pennsylvania is one of only a few states with a service like PACE, a totally income based service that provides drug benefits to seniors who do not qualify for Medicaid. The complaints with the Medicare Part D system are threefold:

1. confusion on which plan to take;
2. seniors not knowing there was a deductible;
3. the prescription drug coverage gap, known as the "doughnut hole."

While declining to grant marriage rites, the Court agreed that same sex couples are entitled to enjoy the same rights that marriage conveys - whether by a process called "marriage" or "civil union" or other title. The court gave the New Jersey legislature 180 days to adopt a law correcting the inequality. Winslow v. Harris, No. A-68-05, -- NJ -- (October 25, 2006).

Until that ruling, only Vermont and Massachusetts courts had held that couples in same sex unions are entitled to rights similar to the rights of traditional married couples - rights under family law (e.g. marriage, custody, divorce, right to exercise medical decisions for a disabled partner), survivor and inheritance rights, and others. The California legislature has created a civil union that resembles marriage in most respects. In a similar challenge to that in New Jersey, the New York Court of Appeals declined to find that equal rights must be extended to same-sex couples.

Commentary on the New Jersey ruling ranges from love to hate. An earlier poll concluded that likely voters in New Jersey back same-sex marriages 55 percent to 41 percent. However, the new ruling could rally opposition political forces in the eight states where amendments to ban gay marriage are on the ballot in next month's election. One grim commentary suggests that the effect of civil union and gay marriage inroads is to inflame religious conservatives and lead to much more litigation about religious freedom, seen by some as a victim of each advance in equal rights for same-sex couples. The subject area is therefore of particularly great interest to JSPAN, which strongly supports the protection of religious freedom and pluralism, as well as equal protection of the laws for all minorities, including lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgendered individuals.

Senate Bill 669, was unanimously approved by the state Senate in 2005 and awaits final passage by the House, which tacked on some technical amendments. It is important for the House to act on this quickly because the amended bill will still have to go back to the Senate for final approval. There are very few legislative days left before the current session ends at which point advocate of this bill will have to start anew.

JSPAN has contacted Senate leadership about expediting passage, and has been assured by counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee that, "The Senate does plan to be in session a couple of days after the election which should give the Senate an opportunity to concur in amendments made by the House of Representatives to this and other Senate bills."

We urge our Pennsylvania members to contact their representatives to seek prompt passage of SB 669.

• View a copy of JSPAN'S letter to the Pennsylvania Legislature.

JCPA (the Jewish Council for Public Affairs) and COEJL (the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life) have announced a program entitled “A Light Among the Nations -- How Many Jews Does It Take to Change a Light Bulb?"

Here is the main step in the program: For Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, purchase and install an energy efficient, cost effective compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulb.

If you could conserve energy and help stop global warming in one simple step, wouldn't you want to act? CFLs use 75% less energy than incandescent light bulbs. This means less production of greenhouse gas emissions, air pollution, and toxic waste. COEJL calculates that if every U.S. household replaced one bulb with a CFL, it would have the same impact as removing one million cars from the road.

So take this one easy action -- install at least one energy efficient, cost effective compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulb to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. For more information visit A Light Among Nations.

(When you buy a fluorescent light bulb, be sure it meets your needs. If you use a dimmer, buy the bulb that will work with that device. Read the fine print – some work only in some positions – up or down – others are more flexible. The right bulb will give you years of service in ordinary use, and produce less glare and much less heat than an incandescent bulb.)

In a concrete, positive step, a group of Colorado state legislators, including the House speaker, said Monday they want to divest any public money from investments that might be going to fund genocide in Sudan. Speaker Andrew Romanoff said his office has already asked the Public Employees Retirement Association to examine its investments to find out if there are companies in there doing business with the Sudanese government. If Colorado divests its money, it would become the sixth state to do so - joining Oregon, New Jersey, Maine, Illinois and, most recently, California. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed that bill in late September and said, "divestment will show our defiance against the murderers and heir inhumanity."

The DPAA imposes sanctions against "persons responsible for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity; supports measures for the protection of civilians and humanitarian operations; and supports peace efforts in the Darfur region of Sudan."

• Carrie Loewethal: "President Bush Signs Darfur Peace and Accountability Act: Issues executive order blocking Khartoum's property and transactions" (Washington File, 10/14/06)
• Jasper Mortimer: Questions and Answers About Darfur (Associated Press, 10/24/06)

Rabin was Prime Minister of the State of Israel from 1974 to 1977 and from 1992 until his death in 1995. Rabin was a key figure in the signing of the Oslo Accords, which enabled the recognition of Israel by the PLO.

He was assassinated on November 4, 1995 by Yigal Amir.