Progressive Muslim Group Blasts Canadian Agency's Study of Sharia Banking

Today's Toronto Star reports that a progressive Muslim group, the Muslim Canadian Congress (MCC), has criticized the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC) for undertaking a study of Sharia banking. In a letter yesterday, the MCC told CMHC chief executive Karen Kinsley that religion has no place in the banking or mortgage industry, and that the organization should scrap its $100,000 study. The MCC said that most Canadian Muslims already use conventional mortgages. In a strong statement, MCC argued that: "Islamic Banking is nothing more than an attempt by Islamists, with backing from Middle Eastern Financial Institutions and their Western partners, to scare Muslim Canadians into believing that they should pay more to the banks and demand less in return as an act of religiosity." Douglas Stewart, the CMHC's vice-president of policy and planning, said the study was part of the agency's mandate to promote research to understand all parts of the Canadian housing system.

State Hears Religious Defense To Sexual Orientation Discrimination

An Alliance Defense Fund release reports that a hearing was scheduled for yesterday and today before the New Mexico Human Rights Division on a complaint by a lesbian couple that a photographer discriminated against them when she refused to photograph their commitment ceremony. The photographer apparently cited her Christian religious beliefs as the reason for the refusal. New Mexico law prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. [Thanks to Eugene Volokh via Religionlaw for the lead.]

Colorado Senate Opens With Hinud Prayer for First Time [Corrected]

Yesterday, for the first time in its history, a Hindu clergyman delivered the opening prayer in the Colorado state Senate. The AP reports that Rajan Zed of Reno, Nev., began by saying "om" to represent the universe and then read passages in Sanskrit and English from he Rig-Veda and Bhagavad-Gita. Last July Zed made history by becoming the first to deliver a Hindu invocation in the United States Senate. He has been invited by three other state legislatures as well.

UPDATE: Following Zed's appearance, state Senator David Schultheis told WorldNet Daily that he was shocked. He said: "I don't know of any Hindus or individuals from India actually in the legislature.... I think the most troubling thing [is] we have this appearance, and yet the bulk of our population is Christian ... and we are not allowed to mention 'Jesus' in any prayer."

Archbishop of Cantebury Suggests New Law To Replace Blasphemy Ban

Yesterday in London, the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams delivered the James Callaghan Memorial Lecture, according to Times Online. In his remarks, Williams conceded that Britain's current blasphemy law "is unworkable and that its assumptions are not those of contemporary lawmakers and citizens overall." However, Williams urged replacing it with broader legislation to protect religious sensibilities. He argued that a new law should punish "extreme behaviors" that have the effect of silencing arguments. The government is in the process of consulting with the Church of England about a government proposal to abolish Britain's existing blasphemy prohibitions. (See prior posting.)

Chaplain Objects To Policy Allowing Prisoner to Choose Multiple Faiths

The Tacoma, Washington News Tribune today carries an interesting article about a 63-year old Catholic prison chaplain who is distressed over the Washington Department of Corrections new policy that allows prisoners to practice dual faiths. The policy change came in the settlement of a RLUIPA lawsuit brought by a prisoner who insisted that he be permitted to worship as both a Native American practitioner and as a Seventh-Day Adventist. The prison chaplain, Tom Suss, who is also a Catholic priest, has taken a voluntary leave of absence from his job after an inmate, under the new policy, requested to be classified as both Catholic, and as a member of the pagan Asatru movement. Suss says he cannot, as the new state policy requires, endorse a person being a Catholic and a pagan at the same time.

State Senator Mike Carrell is introducing an amendment to an existing prison bill to protect the jobs of prison chaplains whose duties conflict with their religious beliefs. Carrell argues that inmates will chose multiple religions in order to exploit the system and get various advantages. Department of Corrections policy already excuses chaplains from performing ecclesiastical duties that conflict with their religious tenets. Suss' problem however is with chaplains' nonreligious duties, such as giving prisoners access to religious items.

State of the Union Calls For Extension of School Choice and Charitable Choice

Among the laundry list of proposals in President Bush's State of the Union Message (full text) last night were these:

We must also do more to help children when their schools do not measure up. Thanks to the D.C. Opportunity Scholarships you approved, more than 2,600 of the poorest children in our Nation's Capital have found new hope at a faith-based or other non-public school. Sadly, these schools are disappearing at an alarming rate in many of America's inner cities. So I will convene a White House summit aimed at strengthening these lifelines of learning. And to open the doors of these schools to more children, I ask you to support a new $300 million program called Pell Grants for Kids....

In communities across our land, we must trust in the good heart of the American people and empower them to serve their neighbors in need. Over the past seven years, more of our fellow citizens have discovered that the pursuit of happiness leads to the path of service. Americans have volunteered in record numbers. Charitable donations are higher than ever. Faith-based groups are bringing hope to pockets of despair, with newfound support from the federal government. And to help guarantee equal treatment of faith-based organizations when they compete for federal funds, I ask you to permanently extend Charitable Choice.

In today's New York Times, two former officials in the White House Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives published an op-ed supporting Bush's call for making the Faith Based Initiative permanent. However David Kuo and John J. DiIulio, Jr. criticized the slow growth and the focus of the present program:

The initiative ... was designed so that small congregations and ministries that had long served needy neighbors on shoestring budgets — and not just large, national religious charities — could get their fair share of government aid. It did not happen. The number of faith-based organizations receiving a federal grant rose from 665 in 2002 to only 762 in 2004.... Over the past six years, federal grants to faith-based programs have shifted away from the local "armies of compassion" praised by Mr. Bush and toward large, national organizations with religious affiliations.

Turkey's Main Parties Agree On Plan To Lift Headscarf Ban At Universities

Both Reuters and the New York Times today report that in Turkey the religiously oriented AK Party of Prime Minister Recep Erdogan has reached an agreement with opposition nationalist MHP Party on language of a constitutional amendment to permit Muslim women attending universities to wear headscarves. The lifting of the headscarf ban applies only to the traditional headscarf that ties under the chin, and not to the wrap-round headscarf that is viewed as a symbol of political Islam. Under the proposal, a woman's face must still remain in view so that she cannot conceal her identity. The headscarf ban continues for teachers and women working in public offices. The Republican People's Party, which reflects the views of the military, remains opposed to lifting the headscarf ban. It has insufficient votes to block the proposal, but may challenge it in court.

Austrian State Proposes Law To Restrict Building of Mosques

In the Austrian state of Carinthia, the government led by right-wing politician Jörg Haider has introduced a bill that would make it difficult to construct mosques or minarets. Spiegel Online reported yesterday that the proposed law would allow a special commission to block construction of any building that is "unusual" or which stands out because of its unusual architecture or height, if the building does not blend in with the neighborhood's existing architecture. Uwe Scheuch, the minister responsible for urban planning, insisted that the proposed law would not infringe on the constitutional right to freedom of religion. Anti-Muslim sentiment in Austria has been growing.

Good News Club Sues Virginia School Board Over Fees

In a release yesterday, Liberty Counsel announced that it had filed suit against the Williamsburg -James City County (Virginia) Public Schools challenging its policy of charging facility usage fees to the Good News Club. The club is a Christian after-school program operated by Child Evangelism Fellowship of Virginia. School board policy allows the superintendent to waive usage fees "in consideration of services rendered by public institutions or nonprofit organizations in direct support of public school students or staff." Fees are waived for the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. In defending against charges of discrimination, the school board pointed to the equal access provision of the No Child Left Behind Act (Sec. 9525) that specifically requires schools receiving federal funds to provide equal access to the Boy Scouts and other youth groups listed in Title 36 of US Code as patriotic societies. (See prior related posting.)

UN Official Finds Religious Liberty Issues In Israel and Palestinain Authority

Reuters reports that Asma Jahangir, the United Nations Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, concluded a week-long visit on Sunday to Israel and the Palestinian Authority. In a statement at the end of her visit, she criticized both Israel and the PA (consistently referred to by Jahangir as "the occupied Palestinian territory") for restrictions on religious freedom. A UN Press Release yesterday summarized the findings set issued by Jahangir, a Pakistani human rights activist. On Israel's part, the UN official criticized the effect of security measures on access to Christian and Muslim holy sites, Israel's preferential treatment of Orthodox Judaism, the inability of citizens with no official religion to marry in Israel, and pressures against religious proselytizing. On the Palestinian side, Jahangir criticized honor killings of women in the name of religion, a rising intolerance of Christians, pressure on Muslim women in Gaza to wear head coverings and suicide bombings by Islamic militants.

NPR Interview With Author of Book on Religon In White House

NPR has made available online a 34 minute segment from yesterday's Fresh Air consisting of an interview with Randall Balmer, author of the recently released book God in the White House. Balmer is also author of the Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism and editor-at-large of Christianity Today.

Presidential Candidates Preach At Churches Despite IRS Guidelines

Appearances by some of the presidential candidates yesterday, in advance of Florida's primary tomorrow and Super Tuesday's 24 primaries and caucuses, raise questions about the interpretation of IRS guidelines for Section 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations, such as churches. Revenue Ruling 2007-41 (June 18, 2007) contains the following example of impermissible activities:

Situation 9. Minister F is the minister of Church O, a section 501(c)(3) organization. The Sunday before the November election, Minister F invites Senate Candidate X to preach to her congregation during worship services. During his remarks, Candidate X states, “I am asking not only for your votes, but for your enthusiasm and dedication, for your willingness to go the extra mile to get a very large turnout on Tuesday.” Minister F invites no other candidate to address her congregation during the Senatorial campaign. Because these activities take place during official church services, they are attributed to Church O. By selectively providing church facilities to allow Candidate X to speak in support of his campaign, Church O’s actions constitute political campaign intervention.

Does this IRS guideline cover speeches from the pulpit if a candidate does not explicitly ask for voters' support?

WMAZ-TV News reports that Sen. Barack Obama spoke for more than 30 minutes yesterday to an overflow crowd at Macon, Georgia's Harvest Cathedral. As part of his remarks, he said: "I believe that our values should be expressed not just through our churches and our synagogues, but through our government."

The Commercial Appeal reports that Sen. Hillary Clinton spoke at morning services at Monumental Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee. During her remarks, she emphasized her support for universal health care, universal pre-kindergarten and an end to the Iraq war.

Former Governor and Baptist minister Mike Huckabee's Sunday morning church attendance seems to have been orchestrated more carefully with IRS guidance in mind. WFOL Fox35 reports that Huckabee attended services at Orlando, Florida's First Baptist Church. The church had invited all candidates to attend. Huckabee did not speak, but did have a brief exchange of reminiscences with Senior Pastor David Uth. Uth also said: "I have made a commitment that our church will not endorse a candidate. Our only purpose is to pray over each candidate and ask for God's wisdom for them. We will not treat any candidate any differently than another." However, Huckabee was scheduled to speak on Sunday evening at services at Pensacola, Florida's East Brent Baptist Church. The Huckabee Campaign notes that this talk is closed to the press.

Press reports do not indicate whether or not other candidates were also invited by the churches at which Obama, Clinton and Huckabee spoke.

Commentary: Oregon Circumcision Decision Avoids Issue of Child's Independent Free Exercise Rights

An important issue remained undecided after the Oregon Supreme Court on Friday sent back to the trial court for further findings the dispute between divorced parents over whether their 12-year old son could receive a religious circumcision. As previously reported, in Boldt v. Boldt, the Oregon Supreme Court remanded the case for further findings on whether or not the boy wanted the procedure. The court's decision only tangentially addressed a critical issue-- to what extent do minor children have free exercise rights when their religious views conflict with those their parents wish them to hold?

In the 1972 U.S. Supreme Court case of Wisconsin v. Yoder, Justice Douglas dissenting in part raised this precise question. There Amish parents were being prosecuted for refusing to send their children to high school on the grounds that high school attendance conflicted with Amish beliefs. Douglas argued: "If the parents in this case are allowed a religious exemption, the inevitable effect is to impose the parents' notions of religious duty upon their children. Where the child is mature enough to express potentially conflicting desires, it would be an invasion of the child's rights to permit such an imposition without canvassing his views."

In Boldt, the child's father argued that the 12-year old's views were irrelevant. He, and several Jewish organizations as amici, argued that the 12-year old should have no more say in the decision than should an infant who is circumcised. In one of her arguments, the mother who opposed the circumcision (along with amicus Doctors Opposing Circumcision) also suggested that the boy should have no say in the matter, so that even if he wanted the procedure he should not be circumcised because of the medical risk involved. The court fudged the issue, holding that the boy's views are important, but only because forcing him against his will to have the procedure would impact his relationship with his father to the point that a change of custody might be in order.

In both speech and religion cases, courts have often vindicated rights of mature children, but in most cases parents supported their child's First Amendment claims. When there is disagreement between parents and child, the issue is more complex. An example of this is an abortion decision made by a mature minor over the religious objections of her parents. In this situation, the Supreme Court has upheld parental involvement, but not parental veto. Another example is a parent's attempt to remove his or her minor child from a religious cult. Courts appear willing to give parents full authority to do this for minors, though not for adult children. See Scott v. Ross, (9th Cir., 1998).

An excellent Harvard Law Review Note, Children as Believers, Minors' Free Exercise Rights and the Psychology of Religious Development, 115 Harv. L. Rev. 2205 (2002) [LEXIS link], further explores the issue of minors' religious rights.

Ohio Supreme Court Case Questions Family's Right To Body Parts of Deceased

Today's Washington Post reports on some of the religious concerns raised in Albrecht v. Treon, a case argued earlier this month before the Ohio Supreme Court. (Video of Jan. 23 argument.) A Jan. 20 Toledo Blade article has additional details on the case. Mark and Diane Albrecht discovered after their son's body had been buried that his brain which had been removed for examination in an autopsy had not been returned. This led to a federal class action against against the coroners and commissioners in 87 of Ohio's 88 counties. At issue is whether the Albrechts "were denied due process of law when the county 'took' parts of their son's body."

The federal trial court certified to the Ohio Supreme Court the question of whether Ohio law grants a right to next-of-kin to a decedent's body parts that have been removed in an autopsy. It noted that a subsequently enacted Ohio law guarantees return of body parts, but only when the autopsy is contrary to the deceased person's religious beliefs. Albrecht v. Treon, 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18613 (SD OH, March 17, 2007). The Washington Post calls attention to one controversial line in the brief of the medical examiners filed with the Ohio Supreme Court: "The real family interest is in the 'soul' of the deceased, if it continues in an afterlife, or in the memory of the 'soul', rather than to the dead carcass."

Mormon Church President Dies; Officials Send Condolences

The New York Times reports that Gordon B. Hinckley, long-time leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, died Sunday in Salt Lake City, Utah. The 97-year old Mormon leader served as president of the LDS Church for almost 13 years. Among his innovations were changes in the Church logo to make the words "Jesus Christ" larger than "Latter Day Saints", and making the Church's extensive genealogical records publicly available online. Today's Deseret Morning News reports on expressions of sympathy from Utah's members of Congress, from state officials and from other leaders in the state.

Texas Lawsuit Challenges Water Quality Law Under RLUIPA

Today's Austin (TX) American-Statesman reports on an interesting suit filed last month in federal district court in Austin. Hope in the City, an Austin, Texas Christian church, is challenging the city's use of a law enacted to protect water quality in the Barton Springs watershed to prevent the church from paving over additional parts of its property for use as a parking lot. At issue is whether the city's water quality concerns underlying its "Save Our Springs" (SOS) ordinance are compelling enough to overcome a challenge under the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, and the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Also at issue is whether the parking lot development is protected under a "grandfather clause" in the SOS ordinance.

Recent Articles on Law and Religion

From SSRN:

• Emon, Anver M., The Limits of Constitutionalism in the Muslim World: History and Identity in Islamic Law , ( in Constitutional Design for Divided Societies, Forthcoming).

From SmartCILP:

• Martin H. Belsky, The Religion Clauses and the "Really New" Federalism, [abstract], 42 Tulsa Law Review 537-551 (2007).


• Charles W. Collier, Terrorism as an Intellectual Problem, 55 Buffalo Law Review 815-840 (2007).


• John T. Noonan, Jr., The Religion of the Justice: Does it Affect Constitutional Decision Making?, 42 Tulsa Law Review 761-770 (2007).


• Thomas A. Schweitzer, Book Review. (Reviewing Bruce Ledewitz, American Religious Democracy: Coming to Terms with the End of Secular Politics.) 23 Touro Law Review 561-574 (2007).


• Jack B. Weinstein, Does Religion Have a Role in Criminal Sentencing?, 23 Touro Law Review 539-560 (2007).


• Pope John Paul II and the Law, Part I. Articles by George Weigel, Robert John Araujo, S.J., Kevin L. Flannery, S.J. and Jane Adolphe. 5 Ave Maria Law Review 361-468 (2007).

Muslim Woman In Bangladesh Planning Conversion Burned By Unknown Attackers

Bos News Life reported yesterday that in Bangladesh, a 70-year old woman is in critical condition with burns over 70% of her body after unknown Muslim extremists set fire to her house to prevent her from being baptized in February as a Christian. On January 7, attackers set Rahima Beoa's bamboo and wood home afire. Beoa's daughter and son-in-law already converted from Islam to Christianity two years ago. Relatives and neighbors remain angry about those conversions.

Standards For Use of Religion By Political Candidates Proposed

Today's Newsday carries an editorial titled "God on the American Campaign Trail". It calls attention to a statement issued earlier this month (Jan. 15) by Faith in Public Life and a group of Catholic, Evangelical, and mainline Protestant leaders concerned about misuse of religion in this year's presidential primaries. Here are excerpts from the statement which is titled Keeping Faith: Principles to Protect Religion on the Campaign Trail:

Exclusionary religious rhetoric by candidates and constant scrutiny of the minutiae of their faiths undermine religion's valuable role in public life. It also runs contrary to the unique American commitment to both religious freedom and non-establishment of religion. History is replete with examples of religion compromised by its collusion with power, and the role of religion in the current campaign raises concern that it is once again being misused.

... Following Article VI of the U. S. Constitution and the First Amendment, we identify three basic principles.

*No person should be expected to leave their faith at the door when operating in the public square. But it is inappropriate to use religious or doctrinal differences to marginalize or disparage candidates.... No religious test may be applied to candidates for public office - not by the law, not by candidates, not by campaigns.

*Candidates for public office should welcome the contributions that religion brings to society. But ... candidates for public office are obliged, in their official capacity, to acknowledge that no faith can lay exclusive claim to the moral values that enrich our public life.

*... While it is appropriate for candidates to connect their faith to their policy positions, their positions on policy must respect all citizens regardless of religious belief.

Meanwhile today's Jerusalem Post reports that the Anti-Defamation League has called on Barack Obama's campaign to clarify fliers distribted to South Carolina voters declaring that Obama is a "committed Christian". Obama's campaign said the fliers were intended to counter false e-mail rumors that Obama was a Muslim. (See prior posting.) A copy of the flier is avaialable online from TPM.

USCIRF Calls For Release of Afghan Student Sentenced for Blasphemy

On Friday, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom sent a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urging the U.S. to press Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai to release Sayed Parwez Kambakhsh. Kambakhsh is a 23 year old student and journalist who has been sentenced to death in Afghanistan for circulating material insulting to Islam. (USCIRF release.) As previously reported, Kambakhsh apparently distributed to other students an article he found on the Internet that commented on Quranic verses about women. USCIRF says the U.S. must encourage Afghanistan to protect freedom of thought, conscience, religion and belief. The agency's letter decried the way in which Afghanistan is enforcing the provision in its Constitution that provides: "no law can be contrary to the beliefs and provisions of the sacred religion of Islam."