German Court Says Legal Intern Can Wear Hijab

In Germany last week, a high-ranking law graduate who encountered a ban on wearing her hijab after she had begun her internship with the Bavarian judicial system won a court victory, at least for now.  According to The Local:

The battle started after [Aqilah] Sandhu successfully completed her state exams and started a traineeship with the Bavarian judicial system.

In July 2014, the highest court in the state sent her a letter informing her that she was forbidden from interrogating witnesses or fulfilling other legal duties as long as she continued to wear a headscarf....

She immediately asked for an explanation of the ban, to which she was told “[religious] clothing and symbols can impair the trust in the religious neutrality of the administration of justice.”...

Judge Bernhard Röthinger decided that the young lawyer was in the right, agreeing that there was no legal basis for the state's attack on her religious freedom.

Sandhu is now seeking damages.  However  the state says it will appeal.

Challenge To Holiday Law Moves Ahead In German Courts

As reported by The Local, in Germany last Thursday the High Court in North Rhine-Westphalia upheld a 100 Euro fine that had been imposed on Martin Budich, the organizer of Religious Freedom in the Ruhr.  Budich was fined for breaking the state's so-called "holiday law" which, among other things, prohibits showing films that are not approved by the state on holidays.  Every year since 2013, on Good Friday Budich has shown the classic British comedy which satirizes the life of Jesus, "The Life of Brian".  His goal has been to test the constitutionality of the holiday law. Now with the High Court's decision, Budich is able to appeal and mount that challenge in Germany's Federal Constitutional Court.  Friendly Atheist has more on the decision. [Thanks to Scott Mange for the lead.]

German Catholic Church Threatens To Sue Famous Footballer Over Church Taxes

Catholic Herald reported this week that the German Catholic Church is threatening to take famous Italian footballer Luca Toni to court over unpaid German church taxes.  The Church claims that Toni failed to pay the Kirchensteuer (church tax) while playing for Bayern Munich from 2007 to 2010.  The Church claims that Toni owes 1.5 million Euros in back taxes plus 200,000 Euros in interest.  A proposed settlement that would have had his team paying 700,000 Euros toward the arrearages was rejected by the team.

Germany's Constitutional Court Invalidates Blanket Ban On Teachers' Wearing Hijabs

Germany's Federal Constitutional Court today invalidated a blanket ban on Muslim teachers wearing the hijab (head scarf) while teaching.  Here is Deutsche Welle's summary of the decision in a suit brought by two teachers:

State authorities had decided that the teachers were violating the law, which in North Rhine-Westphalia forbids any religious symbols or actions that are considered a threat to harmonious co-existence at schools. One of the teachers had been dismissed from her job, while the other received a written warning.

The high court ... has now decided that any such symbol or action must pose a "concrete danger" to be forbidden under the law, saying that the ban was an intrusion on the teachers' self-identity.  The ruling means, however, that headscarves could theoretically still be banned in certain individual cases where such a "concrete" danger is considered to exist. This could occur, for example, if a Muslim teacher wearing a headscarf were to cause frequent altercations among pupils...

The ruling on Friday also overturned another clause in North Rhine-Westphalian law that excepted manifestations "of Christian and Western educational and cultural values or traditions" at schools from the otherwise complete ban on blatant demonstrations of religious affiliation.

The court decided that this exception constituted a privileging of Christian symbols over those of other religions, which would go against the ban on discrimination on religious grounds that is enshrined in the German constitution.

[Thanks to Tom Rutledge and Claudia Haupt for the lead.]

German State's Parliament Votes To Eliminate Mention of God From Constitution; Catholics Seek Reconsideration

Religion News Service reported earlier this week that in the German state of  Schleswig-Holstein, Catholics are trying to get Parliament to reverse its vote last week to exclude the mention of God from the Preamble of the new Constituiton that Parliament is drafting. In order to obtain reconsideration of the decision that passed by a two-thirds majority, proponents must obtain 20,000 signatures.  Six other of the 16 German states have already eliminated the mention of God from their state constitutions.

In Germany, New Tax Rules Lead To Departures From Churches

Reuters reported last week that a change in Germany's tax law has prompted a large jump in the number of Germans leaving both Catholic and Protestant churches. Under Germany's tax law, church members are assessed another 8% or 9% which goes to pay the salaries of clergy, charitable services and other expenses of the church. While the church tax applies to all income, apparently many Germans have paid it only on their salaries and not on their investment income.  Under tax changes that become effective next year, banks will automatically withhold church taxes from accounts in which individuals earn more than 801 Euros in capital gains. Many are leaving their church rather than pay the increased amounts.  Leaving a church means that an individual is no longer entitled to receive sacraments or marry in the church, or receive a religious burial. [Thanks to Scott Mange for the lead.]