On Monday, according to the Associated Press, a Wisconsin federal district court rejected an Establishment Clause challenge to the Veterans Administration practice of giving most patients spiritual assessments that include questions about their religious observance as part of a holistic treatment program. The VA says it believes that spirituality should be integrated into health care, but it allows patients to decide whether that involves religion. The court concluded that the VA program serves a valid secular purpose. The opinion said: "The choice to receive spiritual or pastoral care, the choice to complete a spiritual assessment, and the choice to participate in a religious or spiritually based treatment program always remain the private choice of the veteran. Accordingly, there is no evidence of governmental indoctrination of religion." (See prior related posting.)
The case was brought by the Freedom From Religion Foundation. The Madison (WI) Capital Times quotes FFRF spokesperson Annie Laurie Gaylor who criticized the judge's decision: "He just didn't get it. Part of his decision stated that VA chaplains are there to bring healing through God's grace and he said it without putting it in quotes. Does his courtroom operate that way, too?"
UPDATE: The full opinion in Freedom From Religion Foundation , Inc. v. Nicholson,(WD WI, Jan. 8, 2007) is now available online. Also BBS reported on Thursday that FFRF will appeal the district court's ruling.
