Once again a federal judge has ruled that the University of Wisconsin at Madison must provide student-activity funds to a Roman Catholic student organization — even though the money will be used for religious purposes like worship services and proselytizing.

In an order issued today, Judge John C. Shabaz of the U.S. District Court in Madison said the university could not deny funds to the UW-Madison Roman Catholic Foundation. The same judge issued a similar order last March.

The university later agreed to give the organization $250,000 in student fees. But last September, the group renewed its lawsuit against the university, arguing that Wisconsin should reimburse it for previous denials of funds. The case is scheduled to go to trial in June.

The controversy centers on so-called viewpoint discrimination — in this case, whether a public university can deny student-activity money on the grounds that providing that money would violate the separation of church and state. The Chronicle explored that issue in an article last summer. For background on the Wisconsin case, and to see a copy of the original complaint, visit the Web site of the Center for Academic Freedom. —Thomas Bartlett