Czech Cardinal Sues Over Blasphemous Plays

According to Radio Praha yesterday:

The head of the Czech Roman Catholic Church, Cardinal Dominik Duka, has filed a lawsuit over a pair of theatre plays staged in Brno in May.... The ... plays Our Violence, Your Violence and The Curse included a scene in which Jesus rapes a Muslim woman as well as a depiction of Pope John Paul II in a state of tumescence....

Cardinal Duka says that the theatre show represented an attack on his rights guaranteed by the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms ... specifically ... freedom of religion and the right to dignity and honour....

Short-Term Rental Ban Does Not Burden Rabbi's Religious Freedom

According to today's Savannah Morning News, a Savannah, Georgia state trial court judge has upheld against a religious freedom challenge Savannah's city ordinance prohibiting short-term vacation rentals in certain areas of the city.  Rabbi Arnold Belzer and his wife claim that they were acting in accordance with Jewish scripture and the tradition of hospitality in opening one bedroom in their home to guests from all over the world. The space was listed on Airbnb. The court, in ruling on a motion for a preliminary injunction, held that the zoning ordinance is not a substantial burden on the Belzers' religious freedom.

Report On This Year's State Religious Freedom Legislative Activity

In a June 12 report titled How 139 bills across the country are redefining religious freedom, the Deseret News has tracked all legislation affecting religious freedom passed, defeated or pending this year in state legislatures. The paper says in part:

In all, the Deseret News found 139 bills regarding religious freedom that were debated so far this year. These bills cover everything from religious clubs in elementary schools to state officials authorized to solemnize weddings, but most deal with LGBT rights, free speech, health care and adoption....

This analysis sets the stage for a six-month investigation into the state of religious freedom in America. The Deseret News will explore key conflicts affecting people of faith, sharing the stories of religious college students who feel silenced by school leaders and families caught in the middle of fights over faith-based adoption agencies.

Democrats and Republicans, young and old, once rallied around religious freedom. This project will explore why that's no longer the case.

[Thanks to Blog from the Capital for the lead.]

Restrictions On Religion Around The World Continue To Increase

The Pew Forum this week released its 9th annual study of restrictions on religion imposed by countries around the world.  The 124-page report (full text) says in part:

Restrictions on religion around the world continued to climb in 2016, according to Pew Research Center’s ninth annual study of global restrictions on religion. This marks the second year in a row of increases in the overall level of restrictions imposed either by governments or by private actors (groups and individuals) in the 198 countries examined in the study.

The share of countries with “high” or “very high” levels of government restrictions – that is, laws, policies and actions by officials that restrict religious beliefs and practices – rose from 25% in 2015 to 28% in 2016. This is the largest percentage of countries to have high or very high levels of government restrictions since 2013, and falls just below the 10-year peak of 29% in 2012. 

USCIRF Denounces China's Crackdown on Uighurs; State Department Focuses On Yemen's Persecution of Bahais

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom issued a press release yesterday denouncing China's increasing crackdown on Uighur Muslims.  It said in part:

In addition to longstanding restrictions on Uighur Muslims’ religious practice during Ramadan—such as preventing Uighurs from fasting and praying—the Chinese government has instituted a multifaceted security grid throughout Xinjiang comprised of both personnel and advanced technology, including armed checkpoints, facial and iris recognition software, and cell phone monitoring. Moreover, the Chinese government seeks to stymie the growth of the next generation of Uighur Muslims by banning Uighur language instruction in schools, prohibiting children from attending mosque, and proscribing Islamic baby names considered “extreme.”

Meanwhile yesterday the State Department issued a press release denouncing harassment of Baha'is by the Houthi leaders in Yemen.

Law Student Religious Liberty Writing Competition Announced

The J. Reuben Clark Law Society has announced its 9th Annual Religious Liberty Writing Competition for law students and graduate students in related areas.  The deadline for submissions is July 1, 2018.

Canadian Agency Violates Foster Parents' Rights By Insisting They Say Easter Bunny Is Real

Canadian Press reports that an Ontario Superior Court judge ruled this week that a Christian couple's religious beliefs were infringed in violation of Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms when the Children's Aid Society of Hamilton removed two foster children from their home.  The action closing their foster home came after a social worker insisted that the couple tell the two young girls that the Easter Bunny is real. Foster parents Frances and Derek Baars say that doing so would violate their religious beliefs.  The court wrote in part:

There is ample evidence to support the fact that the children were removed because the Baars refused to either tell or imply that the Easter Bunny was delivering chocolate to the Baars' home. I am more than satisfied that the society actions interfered substantially with the Baars' religious beliefs.

DOJ Imposes More Oversight On US Attorneys In Religious Liberty Cases

In a press release last week, the Department of Justice announced an update to the United States Attorneys' Manual (full text) which adds a section titled "Associate Attorney General’s Approval and Notice Requirements for Issues Implicating Religious Liberty." In order to insure compliance with a memo on protection of religious liberty issued last October (see prior posting), DOJ's new procedures instruct U.S. Attorneys to appoint a contact person to carry out the following instructions:

Immediately inform the Office of the Associate Attorney General upon receiving service of a suit filed against the United States raising any significant question concerning religious liberty;

Coordinate decisions about merits arguments and significant litigation strategy questions in religious liberty cases with the Office of the Associate Attorney General; and

Obtain the approval of the Office of the Associate Attorney General with respect to any affirmative civil suit that impinges on rights under the Free Exercise Clause, Establishment Clause, or Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

Yesterday the Center for Inquiry issued a press release criticizing the new oversight policy.

Today Is Religious Freedom Day

As reported by Blog from the Capital, today is Religious Freedom Day, the anniversary of the passage of the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom in 1786. Traditionally the President issues a Proclamation designating the day.

UPDATE: This morning President Trump issued a  Religious Freedom Day Proclamation (full text) which reads in part:

Our Constitution and laws guarantee Americans the right not just to believe as they see fit, but to freely exercise their religion.  Unfortunately, not all have recognized the importance of religious freedom, whether by threatening tax consequences for particular forms of religious speech, or forcing people to comply with laws that violate their core religious beliefs without sufficient justification.  These incursions, little by little, can destroy the fundamental freedom underlying our democracy.  Therefore, soon after taking office, I addressed these issues in an Executive Order that helps ensure Americans are able to follow their consciences without undue Government interference and the Department of Justice has issued guidance to Federal agencies regarding their compliance with laws that protect religious freedom.  No American — whether a nun, nurse, baker, or business owner — should be forced to choose between the tenets of faith or adherence to the law.

USDA Memo Gives Meat Packing Plants Broad Religious Speech Protection

ADF reported yesterday on a new Guidance Memorandum on First Amendment Policy issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Food Safety (full text), and a related Q&A webpage.  While the Guidance Memorandum appears to flow from President Trump's Executive Order Promoting Free Speech and Religious Liberty issued in May (see prior posting), and a follow-on Memo from the Secretary of Agriculture, it also resolves a particular dispute relating to a Michigan meat-packing plant. Federal meat inspectors working at the plant had removed an article placed on the plant's break room table that expressed religious views opposed to same-sex marriage.  Apparently a USDA official, invoking an Obama-era Policy Statement on sexual harassment,  had threatened to withdraw all its inspectors if the article reappeared.  The new Guidance Memorandum gives broad permission for employees and supervisors at meat plants to express religious views, saying in part:

Employees are permitted to engage in religious expression directed at fellow employees and may attempt to persuade other employees of the correctness of their views.  Religious views should be treated the same as any other comparable speech not involving religion. Proselytizing is as entitled to constitutional protection as any other form of speech.

Supervisors are also free to engage in speech about religion.  While supervisors may not impose unfair work conditions on employees who do not share their religious beliefs, their personal views concerning religion are still protected by the First Amendment.  As a result, supervisors may also express their sincere religious views without fear of sanctions.

Some employers in facilities that are inspected by USDA may wish to display religious icons, religious pamphlets, or faith-based messages in publicly available work areas or on public websites.  Others may support employee religious organizations and openly express their own religious beliefs or practices in the workplace.  USDA employees must act to avoid the limiting or chilling of protected speech.

The Guidance Memorandum adds that USDA employees who believe they are subject to discrimination, harassment or intimidation may still exercise their rights.

Canada's Supreme Court Rejects Aboriginal Tribe's Religious Objection To Ski Resort

In Ktunaxa Nation v. British Columbia (Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations), (Sup. Ct. Canada, Nov. 2, 2017), the Supreme Court of Canada rejected a claim by the aboriginal Ktunaxa Nation that government approval for the development of a ski resort on land they considered sacred would violate their constitutional right to freedom of religion under Section 2(a) of Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms as well as their Aboriginal treaty rights under Section 35 of the Constitution Act.  Chief Justice McLachlin, writing for 7 Justices held (as summarized by the court):

... the Ktunaxa are not seeking protection for the freedom to believe in Grizzly Bear Spirit or to pursue practices related to it. Rather, they seek to protect the presence of Grizzly Bear Spirit itself and the subjective spiritual meaning they derive from it. This is a novel claim that would extend s. 2(a) beyond its scope and would put deeply held personal beliefs under judicial scrutiny. The state’s duty under s. 2(a) is not to protect the object of beliefs or the spiritual focal point of worship, such as Grizzly Bear Spirit. Rather, the state’s duty is to protect everyone’s freedom to hold such beliefs and to manifest them in worship and practice or by teaching and dissemination.

Justice Moldaver, writing for 2 Justices, found a substantial interference with religious beliefs, but concluded that it was justified as a proportionate balancing between the Ktunaxa’s s. 2(a) Charter right and the Minister’s statutory objectives. The court summarized their conclusion as to infringement of religious liberty:

... the Ktunaxa sincerely believe that Grizzly Bear Spirit inhabits Qat’muk, a body of sacred land in their religion, and that the Minister’s decision to approve the ski resort would sever their connection to Qat’muk and to Grizzly Bear Spirit. As a result, the Ktunaxa would no longer receive spiritual guidance and assistance from Grizzly Bear Spirit. Their religious beliefs in Grizzly Bear Spirit would become entirely devoid of religious significance, and accordingly, their prayers, ceremonies, and rituals associated with Grizzly Bear Spirit would become nothing more than empty words and hollow gestures. Moreover, without their spiritual connection to Qat’muk and to Grizzly Bear Spirit, the Ktunaxa would be unable to pass on their beliefs and practices to future generations. 

Lawyer's Daily has a lengthy report on the decision.

Trump Addresses Values Voter Summit

Yesterday, President Trump gave a 30-minute address (full text) to the 2017 Values Voter Summit in Washington, D.C., becoming the first sitting President to address the annual event.  His remarks focused largely on themes of faith and of religious liberty. Here are some excerpts:

George Washington said that “religion and morality are indispensable” to America’s happiness, really, prosperity and totally to its success.  It is our faith and our values that inspires us to give with charity, to act with courage, and to sacrifice for what we know is right. 

The American Founders invoked our Creator four times in the Declaration of Independence -- four times.  (Applause.)  How times have changed.  But you know what, now they're changing back again.  Just remember that.  (Applause.) 

Benjamin Franklin reminded his colleagues at the Constitutional Convention to begin by bowing their heads in prayer. 

Religious liberty is enshrined in the very first amendment of the Bill of Rights.  And we all pledge allegiance to -- very, very beautifully -- “one nation under God.”  (Applause.)  

This is America’s heritage, a country that never forgets that we are all -- all, every one of us -- made by the same God in Heaven.  (Applause.) ....

We have also taken action to protect the conscience rights of groups like the Little Sisters of the Poor.  You know what they went through.  (Applause.)  What they went through -- they were going through hell.  And then all of the sudden they won.  They said, how did that happen?  (Laughter.) 

We want to really point out that the Little Sisters of the Poor and other people of faith, they live by a beautiful calling, and we will not let bureaucrats take away that calling or take away their rights.  (Applause.)

We are stopping cold the attacks on Judeo-Christian values.  (Applause.)  Thank you.  Thank you very much.  And something I've said so much during the last two years, but I'll say it again as we approach the end of the year.  You know, we're getting near that beautiful Christmas season that people don't talk about anymore.  (Laughter.)  They don't use the word "Christmas" because it's not politically correct.  You go to department stores, and they'll say, "Happy New Year" and they'll say other things.  And it will be red, they'll have it painted, but they don't say it.  Well, guess what?  We're saying “Merry Christmas” again.  (Applause.)

Attorney General Issues Guidance On Protection of Religious Liberty

Yesterday, Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a 25-page Memorandum (full text) setting out the Justice Department's understanding of the scope of religious liberty protections. In a covering document, Sessions directed that the interpretive guidance in the Memorandum immediately be incorporated by the Department and U.S. Attorneys in all litigation, interpretative guidance and grant administration.  Among other things, the Memorandum provides:

RFRA applies even where a religious adherent seeks an exemption from a legal obligation requiring the adherent to confer benefits on third parties.

Sessions' Memorandum specifically endorses the Clinton Administration's 1997 Guidelines on Religious Exercise and Religious Expression in the Federal Workplace , saying:

The Clinton Guidelines have the force of an Executive Order, and they also provide useful guidance to private employers about ways in which religious observance and practice can reasonably be accommodated in the workplace.

AP reports on the Attorney General's Memorandum.saying that it "undercuts federal protections for LGBT people."

Trump Nominates Religious Liberty Expert For Seat On 5th Circuit

Yesterday President Trump announced (among other nominations) the nomination of Kyle Duncan for a seat on the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. Much of Duncan's career has been devoted to religious liberty concerns.  Reporting on the nomination, the Baton Rouge Advocate calls Duncan a "conservative Christian legal warrior."

An unusually deep record of Duncan's views on First Amendment issues is available.  From 2004-2008, he was an Assistant Professor of Law at the University of Mississippi where he taught courses on constitutional law, church-state relations, and free speech. (Bio.)  Duncan's publications include:

• Secularism's Laws: State Blaine Amendments and Religious Persecution, 72 Fordham L. Rev. 493 (2003).
• Bringing Scalia's Decalogue Dissent Down from the Mountain, 2007 Utah L. Rev. 287 [LEXIS link].
• Prosecution Responses To Internet Victimization: Child Pornography and First Amendment Standards, 76 Miss. L. J. 677 (2007).
• Subsidiarity and Religious Establishments in the United States Constitution, 52 Vill. L. Rev. 67 (2007).
• Misunderstanding Freedom from Religion: Two Cents on Madison's Three Pence, 9 Nev. L.J. 32 (2008).

From 2012- 2014 Duncan served as general counsel for the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty.  He was lead counsel in the Supreme Court case of Hobby Lobby Stores v. Burwell which concluded that the Affordable Care Act's contraceptive coverage mandate violates religious rights of objecting small businesses under RFRA.  Here is the merits brief that Duncan's team filed in the case.

Now a partner in the Washington, D.C. law firm of Scherr Duncan, his web page includes links to nearly a dozen news interviews and blog posts in which Duncan talks about religious liberty issues.

FFRF Sues To Enjoin Executive Order's Directions On Johnson Amendment

Yesterday the Freedom From Religion Foundation filed suit in a Wisconsin federal district court challenging President Trump's Executive Order on Free Speech and Religious Liberty.  The complaint (full text) in Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc. v. Trump, (WD WI, filed 5/4/2017) seeks an order declaring that the Executive Order violates the Establishment Clause and the equal protection element of the 5th Amendment by providing preferential treatment to churches, and that it exceeds the President's powers under Article II. The complaint also asks for an injunction preventing the Commissioner of Internal Revenue from implementing the Executive Order. The complaint quotes at length Presidential statements, particularly to Evangelical Christian audiences, promising to overturn the Johnson Amendment, and then contends:

The EO, with the President’s annotated interpretation and construction, makes clear that a relaxed and differential standard of enforcement of § 501(c)(3)’ electioneering restrictions shall be applied to churches and religious officials.

An FFRF press release announced the filing of the lawsuit. The suit came as the ACLU announced it would not sue over the Executive Order. (See prior posting).  [Thanks to Norman Buck for the lead.] 

ACLU Will Not Sue Over Religious Freedom Executive Order

The ACLU announced yesterday that after careful review of President Trump's new Executive Order on Free Speech and Religious Liberty, it has decided not to file suit. It said in part:

Today’s executive order signing was an elaborate photo-op with no discernible policy outcome. After careful review of the order’s text we have determined that the order does not meaningfully alter the ability of religious institutions or individuals to intervene in the political process. The order portends but does not yet do harm to the provision of reproductive health services.

President Trump’s prior assertion that he wished to ‘totally destroy’ the Johnson Amendment with this order has proven to be a textbook case of ‘fake news.’

Pew Study: Global Hostility To Religion Grew In 2015

Earlier this month, the Pew Research Center released its annual study (full text) of global restrictions on religion. The 79-page report covers the year 2015 and concludes:

Government restrictions on religion and social hostilities involving religion increased in 2015 for the first time in three years....

The share of countries with “high” or “very high” levels of government restrictions – i.e., laws, policies and actions that restrict religious beliefs and practices – ticked up from 24% in 2014 to 25% in 2015. Meanwhile, the percentage of countries with high or very high levels of social hostilities – i.e., acts of religious hostility by private individuals, organizations or groups in society – increased in 2015, from 23% to 27%.  Both of these increases follow two years of declines in the percentage of countries with high levels of restrictions on religion by these measures.

When looking at overall levels of restrictions in 2015 – whether resulting from government policies and actions or from hostile acts by private individuals, organizations or social groups – the new study finds that 40% of countries had high or very high levels of restrictions, up from 34% in 2014.

House Hearing On State of Religious Liberty In U.S.

Last Thursday, the House Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice held a hearing on "The State of Religious Liberty in America." A video of the full hearing and transcripts of the prepared testimony of the four witnesses who testified are available on the Committee's website.  Testifying were representatives of the Christian Legal Society, Becket and Alliance Defending Freedom as well as Rabbi David Saperstein who until recently served as the U.S. Ambassador at-Large for International Religious Freedom. For a critical view of the hearing, see this report from Religion Dispatches.

Draft Executive Order Would Expand Free Exercise Protections

The Nation reported yesterday on a leaked copy of a draft Executive Order on Religious Freedom which is currently being circulated by the White House, saying:

The draft order seeks to create wholesale exemptions for people and organizations who claim religious or moral objections to same-sex marriage, premarital sex, abortion, and trans identity, and it seeks to curtail women’s access to contraception and abortion through the Affordable Care Act. 

The draft titled Establishing a Government-Wide Initiative to Respect Religious Freedom is set out in full in The Nation report.  The Order provides in part:

“Religious organization” shall be construed broadly to encompass any organization, including closely held for-profit corporations, operated for a religious purpose, even if its purpose is not exclusively religious, and is not limited to houses of worship or tax-exempt organizations, or organizations controlled by or associated with a house of worship or a convention or association of churches.

Sec. 3 Religious Freedom Principles and Policymaking Criteria. All executive branch departments and agencies (“agencies”) shall, to the greatest extent practicable and permitted by law, adhere to the following principles and criteria when formulating and implementing regulations, actions, or policies:

(a) Religious freedom is not confined to religious organizations or limited to religious exercise that takes place in houses of worship or the home. It is guaranteed to persons of all faiths and extends to all activities of life.

(b) Persons and organizations do not forfeit their religious freedom when providing social services, education, or healthcare; earning a living, seeking a job, or employing others; receiving government grants or contracts: or otherwise participating in the marketplace, the public square, or interfacing with Federal, State or local governments....

Baptist Joint Committee Appoints New Executive Director

In a press release issued earlier this week, the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty announced that it has chosen Amanda R. Tyler as its next executive director. She will replace Brent Walker who is retiring.  The Baptist Joint Committee is a D.C.-based advocacy group that promotes both religious liberty and separation of church and state.