Kuwait MPs Protest Women Cabinet Members Not Wearing Headscarves

AP reported yesterday that nine Islamic members of Kuwait's newly-elected Parliament walked out in protest when two women Cabinet members being sworn in were not wearing headscarves or the long dresses that Islamists say are religiously required. The nine men returned after Modhi al-Homoud and Nouria al-Subeih took their oaths of office. Now 24 of the 50 members of Kuwait's Parliament are religious hard liners.

Saudi Law Could Sentence Man To Death For Profanity

The Los Angeles Times reported last week that in Jidda, Saudi Arabia, a Turkish barber who cuts hair in the city has been in jail for 13 months for using a profanity that takes God's name in vain. Sabri Bogday cursed during an argument with a neighbor. The neighbor reported Bogday to the police. While Turkey's president Abdullah Gul has sought Bogday's release, some Saudi judges consider his offense to be heresy and infidelity, punishable by death. Other judges however treat this merely as disbelief which allows the offender to obtain release by retracting what he has said and repenting.

UPDATE: A different Turkish barber, Ersin Taze, who was arrested by Saudi authorities over a month ago for slandering the Prophet Muhammad, has been released. M&C (June 5) reports that the Turkish Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Naci Koru, said that a Saudi court dismissed the case for lack of evidence.

Times Public Editor Says Columnist Was Wrong On Obama As Apostate

Today's New York Times carries a piece by Public Editor Clark Hoyt criticizing a May 12 op-ed by Edward N. Luttwak titled President Apostate? The Public Editor wrote:

ON May 12, The Times published an Op-Ed article by Edward N. Luttwak, a military historian, who argued that any hopes that a President Barack Obama might improve relations with the Muslim world were unrealistic because Muslims would be “horrified” once they learned that Obama had abandoned the Islam of his father and embraced Christianity as a young adult.

Under “Muslim law as it is universally understood,” Luttwak wrote, Obama was born a Muslim, and his “conversion” to Christianity was an act of apostasy, a capital offense and “the worst of all crimes that a Muslim can commit.”

..... Did Luttwak cross the line from fair argument to falsehood? Did Times editors fail to adequately check his facts before publishing his article? Did The Times owe readers a contrasting point of view?

I interviewed five Islamic scholars, at five American universities, recommended by a variety of sources as experts in the field. All of them said that Luttwak’s interpretation of Islamic law was wrong.

Yuma Church Sues Over Zoning Denial

Last week in Yuma, Arizona, a federal lawsuit was filed challenging the denial of a conditional use permit to Centro Familiar Cristiano Buenos Nuevas Christian Church that wished to operate in the city's Old Town Historic Zoning District. Last Thursday's Yuma Sun reports that the permit was denied after opponents expressed concern about the impact the church would have on the redevelopment of the area. The complaint (full text) alleges: "The City of Yuma Planning & Zoning Commission denied the application because the Church, as a religious assembly, did not fit within its concept of a use that would promote economic growth in the downtown area. The Plaintiffs have brought this suit because Yuma’s denial violates the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, several provisions of the federal Constitution, and Arizona’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act." In a release on the case, Alliance Defense Fund says :"The zoning code at issue allows membership groups and theaters to locate in the district while specifically excluding religious organizations."

US Marine Removed After Proselytizing Muslims In Fallujah

The AP reported yesterday that a Marine in Iraq was removed from duty after it was disclosed that he had passed out coins promoting Christianity to Sunni Muslims in the strongly religious city of Fallujah. One side of the coin read: "Where will you spend eternity?" The other side read: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16." The incident could heighten tensions over a proposed long-term security agreement between the U.S. and Iraq. Sheik Abdul-Rahman al-Zubaie criticized the Marine's actions, saying: "This event did not happen by chance, but it was planned and done intentionally. The Sunni population cannot accept and endure such a thing. I might not be able to control people's reactions if such incidents keep happening." [Thanks to Scott Mange for the lead.]

Influential Philanthropist Backing New Hebrew Language Charter School In NY

The Forward reported this week that "mega-philanthropist" Michael Steinhardt is backing a group of individuals who plan to file an application in New York City to create a Hebrew Language Academy Charter School in Brooklyn. The Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life will thereby lend its substantial weight to the movement to create public charter schools that teach Hebrew-language, Jewish culture and history and and acquaint students with modern Israeli society. Last year, the nation's first such school-- The Ben Gamla School-- opened in Hollywood, Florida to mixed reviews in the Jewish community. (See prior posting.)

Cases In Canada, Britain Sanction Refuals To Treat Gay Couples Equally

In M.J. v. Nichols, (Sask. Hum. Rts. Trib., May 23, 2008), the Saskatchewan Human Rights Tribunal held that a government marriage commissioner must not discriminate in performing civil marriages. The Tribunal held that a Commissioner who refused to perform a ceremony for a gay couple violated Section 12 of the Saskatchewan Human Rights Code. Awarding damages of only $2500, the Tribunal said: "it is clear that the Respondent was acting out of his genuine and sincere religious belief in refusing to perform the marriage ceremony. This is not a case where the Respondent was simply acting in a callous and calculated manner. Even though I have determined that the Respondent was not entitled to refuse to perform the marriage ceremony on the basis of his religious beliefs, I can take this into account in assessing an appropriate award." Canadian Press yesterday reported on the case.

Meanwhile in Britain, the Devon County Council has suspended the license of the Earl of Devon to use his castle for marriage ceremonies after he refused on religious grounds to permit a gay couple to hold a civil partnership ceremony there. Friday's Pink News reports that this is the first time such action has been taken under the Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations that came into effect last year.

Muslim Workers Claim Religious Discrimination Over Uniform Policy

Earlier this week, six Somali Muslim women filed religious discrimination complaints with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Minnesota Department of Human Rights over the uniform policy of their New Brighton, Minnesota employer, Mission Foods. Thursday's Finance and Commerce reports that the women dress in traditional Islamic robes and head coverings, and refuse to wear a new pants-and-shirt uniform, saying to do so would be inconsistent with their religious beliefs. Mission Foods is the largest producer of tortillas in the US.

French Court Annuls Muslim Marriage When Wife Is Not A Virgin As Claimed

Reuters reported yesterday that a heated debate is raging in France after a court allowed an Muslim husband to annul his marriage when he discovered that his wife was not a virgin as she had claimed to be. The husband's lawyer said that the basis for the annulment was not religious, but rather a principle in French law that treats marriage as a contract and permits an annulment "when there is an error concerning essential qualities of one of the spouses."

UPDATE: France's Justice Minister Rachida Dati has ordered a government appeal of the case, according to a June 3 Reuters report. Attorneys for both the husband and wife object, but Prime Minister Francois Fillon said that French law should not be interpreted to allow virginity to be a "key element in consent to marry." Concern over Muslim views being incorporated into French law has been in the background of the heated debate over the ruling.

Obama Resigns From His Church After Guest Preacher Mocks Clinton

CNN reports today that Barack Obama has resigned from his Chicago church, Trinity United Church of Christ. While Obama previously distanced himself from remarks by the church's former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, he did not resign his membership until a new embarrassment. Video surfaced of a sermon delivered at the church a few days ago by a visiting Catholic priest, Rev. Michael Pfleger, a friend of Rev. Wright. In the sermon, Pfleger mocked Hillary Clinton and suggested she believed she was entitled to the presidency because she is white and the wife of a former president. Church members listening greeted the remarks enthusiastically. Obama said he was resigning with some sadness, but he did not want to have to answer for everything said in the church and does not want the church subjected to the kind of scrutiny that accompanies a Presidential campaign.

Indiana Tax Court Says Christian Campground Gets Exemption

In Cedar Lake Conference Association v. Lake County Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals, (IN Tax Ct., May 28, 2008), the Indiana Tax Court concluded that a Christian campground was entitled to a property tax exemption because it was predominately used for religious purposes. It held that "the fact that some recreational activities may have taken place on the RV Park does not necessarily lead to the conclusion that CLCA's use of the property does not further its religious purposes." Today's Chicago Tribune reports on the decision.

School Sued After Telling Student Not To Wear Anti-Abortion T-Shirts

Today's St. Paul Pioneer Press reports on a federal lawsuit filed earlier this week on behalf of a sixth-grader who was told not to wear T-shirts carrying anti-abortion slogans in class. Claiming a violation of the student's free speech rights, the lawsuit asserts that the student is "a sincere practicing Christian" who is "compelled by his conscience and by the tenets of his religion to spread and promote his faith and its teachings, particularly with regard to abortion." The complaint says that the sixth-grader expresses his views "in a manner typical of students in the public schools — by means of slogans on shirts he wears while attending classes at Hutchinson Middle School." On eleven different occasions teachers told the student that the message on his T-shirt was not appropriate for class. In addition to a slogan, each T-shirt-- purchased from the American Life League-- carried photos of unborn fetuses. The suit was filed on behalf of the student's mother by the Thomas More Law Center.

South Carolina Passes Bill Permitting Display Including 10 Commandments and Lord's Prayer

The South Carolina legislature yesterday passed and sent to the governor for his signature H3159, that permits schools and local governments to post a Foundations of American Law and Government display described in the statute. The display includes the Ten Commandments and 12 other historical documents from the Magna Carta to Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech. It also includes the Lord's Prayer. The statute describes the historical significance of each of the documents.

Yesterday's Greenville News reports that some House members were upset that a Senate amendment removed the Pledge of Allegiance as one of the documents in the display. Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn McConnell voted against the bill fearing that inclusion of the Lord's Prayer in the display would lead to litigation. Describing the historical significance of the Lord's Prayer, the bill says: "The Lord's Prayer, used to teach people how best to seek their daily needs, is a model of philosophy and inspiration for legal and moral systems throughout the ages. In the colonies, James Oglethorpe brought debtors to freedom in our neighboring state of Georgia in remembrance of 'forgiving our debts as we forgive our debtors'."

Tennessee Federal Court Says School Endorsed "Praying Parents" Group

In Doe v. Wilson County School System, (MD TN, May 29, 2008), a Tennessee federal court ruled that Lakeview Elementary School in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, violated the Establishment Clause when it allowed extensive use of school facilities to publicize activities of a group known as Praying Parents. The organization describes itself as "a group of Lakeview parents who meet once a month to pray for our school, faculty, staff, and children. We pray for specific needs as well as for school-related issues. We also try to provide occasional 'treats' for our faculty and staff to remind them that we are praying for them."

The court concluded that "certain practices at Lakeview Elementary School during the 2005-2006 school year did not have a secular purpose and were allowed or pursued to tacitly approve the activities of the Praying Parents, which had the primary effect of endorsing or promoting their Christian beliefs and programs at the school. In addition, the Praying Parents practices and programs at the school caused the Lakeview administrators and teachers to become excessively entangled with religion in violation of the Establishment Clause." Today's Tennessean reports on the decision. (See prior related posting.)

ACLU Sues Claiming Ohio Judge Is In Contempt For Displaying Poster

In Mansfield, Ohio, the ACLU has filed a motion in federal court to hold Richland County Common Pleas Judge James DeWeese in contempt for violating a 2002 federal court order (affirmed by the 6th Circuit) to remove a display of the Ten Commandments from his court room. Yesterday's Mansfield News Journal reports that Judge DeWeese now has a poster displayed that compares moral absolutes and moral relativism.

The Motion for an Order to Show Cause filed yesterday (full text of motion and supporting memorandum in ACLU of Ohio Foundation v. Ashbrook) says that the current poster is a list of Humanist Precepts printed next to the Ten Commandments, with a discussion of their differences. It conclude with the statement: "I join the founders in personally acknowledging the importance of Almighty God's fixed moral standards for restoring the moral fabric of this nation." Judge DeWeese says he is not in contempt because this is a different poster than the one that was previously enjoined. He told the Mansfield News Journal: It’s really about a debate of philosophies and how that affects our criminal caseloads. I put both sides up. People can make their own decisions."

Preliminary Injunction Against Illinois Moment of Silence Extended Statewide

Yesterday's Chicago Tribune reports that Illinois federal district judge Robert W. Gettleman has extended his preliminary injunction barring enforcement of Illinois' moment of silence law to all school districts in the state. In November, he had issued a preliminary injunction against one school district, Buffalo Grove. That injunction also applied to the Illinois State Board of Education, but the Board claimed it had no authority to enforce the injunction. In March the court agreed the suit could be converted into a class action against all school districts in the state. (Sherman v. Township High School Dist. 214 [LEXIS link]). Having received no objections to his March order, the court now extended its preliminary injunction statewide. Anyone with standing can now enforce the order against a school district. Plaintiff in the class action, radio talk show host Rob Sherman, however only has standing as to the Buffalo Grove district where his daughter is enrolled in school. [Thanks to Scott Mange for the lead.]

Texas Supreme Court Says State Lacked Basis For Removing FLDS Children

Today in In re Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, (TX Sup. Ct., May 29, 2008), the Texas Supreme Court agreed with the 3rd District Court of Appeals (see prior posting) that the state lacked a sufficient basis to place into Department of Family and Protective Services custody the children that it removed last month from the FLDS Ranch in Eldorado, Texas. The main case before the court involved 126 of those children and a companion case involved 13 more, but the reasoning would appear to apply to all 468 children involved. In a relatively short opinion, six justices held:

On the record before us, removal of the children was not warranted. The Department argues without explanation that the court of appeals’ decision leaves the Department unable to protect the children’s safety, but the Family Code gives the district court broad authority to protect children short of separating them from their parents and placing them in foster care. The court may make and modify temporary orders "for the safety and welfare of the child", including an order "restraining a party from removing the child beyond a geographical area identified by the court". The court may also order the removal of an alleged perpetrator from the child’s home and may issue orders to assist the Department in its investigation. The Code prohibits interference with an investigation, and a person who relocates a residence or conceals a child with the intent to interfere with an investigation commits an offense

While the district court must vacate the current temporary custody orders as directed by the court of appeals, it need not do so without granting other appropriate relief to protect the children, as the mothers involved in this proceeding concede....

Justices O'Neill, Johnson and Willett in a separate opinion dissented in part, arguing that there was sufficient evidence to justify taking into custody the pubescent female children. They said "evidence indicated a pattern or practice of sexual abuse of pubescent girls, and the condoning of such sexual abuse, on the Ranch..." They argued that resistant behavior by parents and children made it difficult to fashion less intrusive remedies. However these justices agreed with the majority that there was not sufficient evidence to justify awarding custody of male children and pre-pubescent female children to DFPS. CNN reports on the decision.

In the companion case involving 13 other children, the Court issued a brief per curiam opinion reaching the same result.

The pleadings and briefs in the cases are available here and here from the Texas Suprme Court website.

British Churches and Borough Dispute Over Free Trash Pick-Up

In Britain, the Macclesfield Express reports on the controversy between local churches and the Macclesfield Borough Council over trash collection. The UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs says that its regulations require boroughs to provide free trash pick-up to places of worship. Macclesfield though has been demanding commercial rates from churches-- leading some churches to rely on members to dispose of rubbish for them. Paul Morgan, Macclesfield's Corporate Waste Manager, argued that the government regulations requiring free service are out of date, and are unclear on whether churches can be charged when their halls are used for entertainment.

Army Plans To Remove Crosses From Kosovo Base Chapel Grounds

Life Site News yesterday reported on a controversial plan by the U.S. Army to relandscape the grounds of Peacekeeper’s Chapel that serves US soldiers at Camp Bondsteel in Kosovo. Three wooden crosses outside the chapel will be replaced by a stone monument engraved with the chapel's name and the US Army Chaplain Corps crest. The change will conform to an Army regulation that bars "distinctive religious symbols, such as crosses, crucifixes, the Star of David, menorah, and other religious symbols" from being "affixed or displayed permanently on the chapel exterior or grounds." (Army Reg. 165-1, 13-3.d). As part of the project, a chapel memorial plaque for US Chaplain Gordon Oglesby who died serving in Kosovo will also be removed. The plaque violates Army policy against naming a chapel after a soldier.

Court Hears Arguments In Virginia "Division Statute" Case

Yesterday, a Fairfax County, Virginia trial court heard arguments on the constitutionality of Virginia's 1867 "Division Statute" that allows congregations to vote to separate from their parent body and retain their church property. In an earlier phase of the case, the court ruled that, if the statute is constitutional, it applies to eleven Virginia congregations that broke away from the Episcopal Church. (See prior posting.) Yesterday's Richmond Times-Dispatch reports on the arguments. William Hurd, lawyer for the diocese, argued that the post-Civil War statute was aimed at helping Virginia congregations free themselves from control by religious denominations based in the North. He argued that the requirement the court determine whether a division exists within a denomination unconstitutionally involves the court in theological determinations. Steffen Johnson, representing the break-away congregations, argued that the statute merely provides a neutral test for the court to apply to settle property disputes.