Shoe Bomber On Prison Hunger Strike Over Religious Restrictions

World Bulletin reports that convicted shoe-bomber Richard Reid, in prison in a Supermax facility in Colorado, is on a hunger strike in protest over alleged refusals to permit him to practice his Islamic faith. Reid, convicted in 2003, has filed a federal lawsuit over prison restrictions and has been refusing food for several weeks. A recently-disclosed court filing indicates that authorities are force-feeding and hydrating Reid.

UPDATE: Reuters (June 10) reports that the Justice Department will not renew the "Special Administrative Measures" imposed on Reid when they expire June 17. Apparently this will then allow him to join group prayer with other Muslim inmates and have access to an imam.

Some German States Resist Jehovah's Witnesses Push For Recognition

Spiegel Online today reports on efforts by the Jehovah's Witnesses in Germany to obtain legal recognition in various German states as a "public law corporation." According to Country Reports. org, this status entitles a religious group "to name prison, hospital and military chaplains, and to levy a tithe (averaging 9 percent of income tax) on its members that the state collects. An estimated 180 religious groups have been granted public law corporation status." Spiegel details efforts in the states of Rhineland-Palatinate, North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Württemberg to resist granting this status, which several other states have already granted the group.

Secretary of State Meets With USCIRF Members

On Monday, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with the members of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom to receive their 2009 Annual Report (see prior posting) and discuss with them issues of religious freedom and religious expression. Both the State Department's website and that of USCIRF carry the text of Clinton's introductory remarks during which she referred to religious freedom as a core human right and a core American value.

Graduating Class Protests Consent Decree With Lord's Prayer

In early May, a Florida federal district court approved a consent decree in Doe v. School Board for Santa Rosa County, Florida which among other things enjoined school officials from authorizing or including prayers as part of school events, including graduation ceremonies. (See prior posting.) As a result, according to yesterday's Florida Baptist Witness, two previously scheduled student speakers for Pace High School's commencement ceremonies last week were removed from the program, apparently because they intended to offer religious remarks. Monday's Louisville Christian Examiner reports that at the commencement ceremonies, the entire Pace High graduating class protested. Many students wore crosses on their mortar boards, and when the Principal asked everyone at the ceremony to be seated, the graduating class remained standing and recited the Lord’s Prayer. Pace school principal Frank Lay said he is proud of the maturity and kindness seniors displayed in their response.

Muslim Military Chaplains Discuss Their Special Roles

Reuters Faith World yesterday carried an interesting account of a conference held Sunday in Paris at which two Muslim chaplains, one from the U.S. Navy and one from the French National Gendarmerie (which is governed by the Defense Ministry), discussed the special problems dealt with by Muslim imams in military chaplaincy roles. The conference, "Religious Diversity in Everyday Life in France," was sponsored by the U.S.-based Council on International Educational Exchange and the Institute for the Study of Islam and the Societies of the Muslim World in Paris. Among the trickier issues the chaplains face are advice on Ramadan observance while in the military and conscientious objections by Muslim personnel to fighting in Afghanistan. [Thanks to Joel Katz (Relig. & State In Israel) for the lead.]

Unpaid Buddhist Monk Says He Is Not "Employed" For Visa Purposes

The Wall Street Journal today reports on an immigration appeal out of Pamona, California raising the question of whether an unpaid Buddhist monk was "employed" by the Wat Buddhapanya Temple in violation of immigration rules. The monk, a citizen of Thailand, entered the U.S. in 2005 on an R-1 Religious Workers visa. (See prior related posting.) Because of delays in the government ruling on the Temple's application for extension of the R-1 visa and on an application for a green card, Monk Phra Bunphithak Jomthong's visa expired, and the government is seeking to deport him for working without a green card. Jomthong leads daily religious group chants, runs a 24-hour emergency hot line for families and teaches Thai language to the children of immigrants. His attorney argues that while the monk works at his religious labors, he is not "employed" by the Temple because he took an oath of poverty and receives no wages.

AU Complains To IRS About Church's Endorsement of Gubernatorial Candidate

Americans United announced yesterday that it has asked the Internal Revenue Service to investigate whether Richmond, Virginia's Fifth Street Baptist Church violated tax rules relating to non-profits by endorsing a gubernatorial candidate. AU wrote the IRS (full text of letter) calling its attention to a Washington Post article indicating that the church's pastor allowed candidate Brian Moran to speak during church services on June 7, just before the primary election. Some 50 parishioners were in attendance. Rev. F. Todd Gray told the congregation that Moran had the right policy on guns, affirmative action, taxes and jobs. He then added: "I'm not telling you who to vote for. I'm just telling you who I'm voting for. I'm voting for Brian Moran." The candidate was apparently invited to the church by one of its members, Evelyn Morris-Harris, chairwoman of the Democratic Black Caucus of Virginia.

10th Circuit Holds 10 Commandments Monument Violates Establishment Clause

In Green v. Haskell County Board of Commissioners, (10th Cir., June 8, 2009), the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals held that a display of a Ten Commandments monument on the lawn of the county courthouse in Stigler, Oklahoma, violated the Establishment Clause. It concluded that the particular history of this monument-- including the religious motivation of its backers-- meant that a reasonable observer would view the Monument as having the impermissible primary effect of endorsing religion. AP yesterday reported on the decision.

UCLA Changes Policy To Allow Student Reference To Jesus In Graduation Statement

Once again, the unclear line between student speech and government-endorsed speech at graduation exercises has created a high-profile controversy. Tradition at the UCLA Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology calls for each student to submit a short message ("words of wisdom") that are then read from stage at commencement by a member of the University Administration. Saturday's Christian Post reported that graduating student Christina Popa was told by her faculty advisor that a reference in Popa's statement to "my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" would be read as "God" during commencement ceremonies, to avoid making some of the diverse audience uncomfortable. Popa objected and began a campaign on Facebook to get the decision reversed. Also former Navy Chaplain Gordon Klingenschmitt, who had been involved in his own dispute of offering sectarian prayers at public ceremonies, issued a press release and created an online petition supporting Popa. On Friday, UCLA reversed its decision, instead deciding that it would take steps to make clear to the commencement audience that the "words of wisdom" are the personal statements of each student.

DOJ Sues New Jersey County Over Religious Employment Discrimination

The U.S. Department of Justice announced yesterday that it has filed a Title VII religious discrimination lawsuit against Essex County, New Jersey. The complaint alleges that the county refused to permit corrections officer Yvette Beshier to wear a religiously mandated headscarf during work. The complaint asks a New Jersey federal district court to order the county to pay damages and to adopt a policy to reasonably accommodate the religious practices of employees and prospective employees subject to the Correction Department's uniform policy for officers.

Cert. Denied In Navajo Nation RFRA Case

The U.S. Supreme Court today denied certiorari in Navajo Nation v. Forest Service, (Docket No. 08-846). (Order List.) The 9th Circuit in the case held in an 8-3 en banc decision, that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act does not bar the Forest Service from approving the use of recycled waste water to make artificial snow at Arizona's Snowbowl ski resort, which operates on federal land. (See prior posting.)

Jewish Group Solicits Questions To Supreme Court Nominee

Reform Judaism's Religious Action Center has put up a web page titles "Ask Judge Sotomayor." It invites site visitors to submit questions they would like to see the Senate Judiciary Committee ask Sotomayor during her confirmation hearings. RAC says it will share questions submitted with Senators.

Report Says Israel Tax Official Seizes Catholic Church Funds For Taxes

Asia News this morning reports that in Israel, The Finance Ministry's Chief Tax Collector, Yehezkel Abrahamoff, has notified institutions of the Catholic Church in the country that he has seized their funds to force them to pay taxes he believes are due. This action short-circuits negotiations that have been going on for ten-years by the Israel-Holy See Permanent Bilateral Commission to work out the Catholic Church's tax status. (See prior posting.)

Recent Articles Of Interest

From SSRN:

• Jeff Redding, Proposition 8 and the Future of American Same-Sex Marriage Activism, (Nexus, Vol. 14, p. 113, 2009).
• Anne Twomey, The Australian Crowns - Changing the Rules of Succession, (Quadrant, Vol. 53, No. 6, pp. 44-47, 2009).
• Barry McDonald, Getting Beyond Religion as Science: 'Unstifling' Worldview Formation in American Public Education, (Washington and Lee Law Review, Vol. 66, 2009).
• Amy Lavine & Patricia Salkin, God and the Land: A Holy War Between Religious Exercise and Community Planning and Development, (Albany Government Law Review, Vol. 2, 2009).

From SmartCILP:

• Donald Kerwin, Toward a Catholic Vision of Nationality, 23 Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics and Public Policy 197-207 (2009).
• Craig W. Mandell, Tough Pill to Swallow: Whether Catholic Institutions Are Obligated Under Title VII to Cover Their Employees' Prescription Contraceptives, 8 University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender & Class 199-239 (2008).
• Lucian C. Martinez, Jr., Sovereign Impunity: Does the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act Bar Lawsuits Against the Holy See in Clerical Sexual Abuse Cases?, 44 Texas International Law Journal 123-155 (2008).
• Nicholas A. Mirkay, Losing Our Religion: Reevaluating the Section 501(c)(3) Exemption of Religious Organizations That Discriminate, 17 William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal 715-764 (2009).
• Mark Strasser, Repudiating Everson: On Buses, Books, and Teaching Articles of Faith, 78 Mississippi Law Journal 567-636 (2009).

Israel's High Court Hears Challenges To Army Alternatives For Religious Students

Jerusalem Post reports that yesterday a 9-judge panel of Israel's High Court of Justice heard arguments challenging the "Tal" law. The law allows Orthodox Jewish students in yeshivot an alternative to the usual required military service. They serve only one year of military service or alternative public service and then enter the work force without being drafted. The law was intended to give an opportunity for some full-time ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students who have draft exemptions to leave their full time religious studies. The five petitions before the court essentially challenge as a denial of equality in the special draft exemptions for ultra-Orthodox students. In 2006 the High Court rejected similar challenges, expressing concern but saying that there should be a resolution through the political process. However it threatened to act in the future if this did not happen. (See prior posting.) Instead of any changes, in 2007, the Tal law, that had originally been enacted for only a 5-year period, was reauthorized by the Knesset for another 5 years. [Thanks to Religion & State in Israel (Joel Katz) for the lead.]

New Repressive Religion Law Takes Effect In Azerbaijan

Forum 18 reported last week that in Azerbaijan, a repressive new religion law, along with related amendments to the Criminal Code and Administrative Code came into effect on May 31. All religious organizations are required to re-register by January 1, 2010. The amendments create a new offense of producing, importing or selling religious literature without specific permission of the Committee for Work with Religious Organizations. Also it will be illegal to conduct religious activities away from a group's registered address. Also included in the new law is language that may be seen as banning conscientious objection and language creating a lengthy list of reasons for banning a religious organization.

Swiss Senate Urges Defeat of Ban on Minarets

In Switzerland last Friday, the country's Senate voted 36-3 to recommend that voters defeat an initiative to ban minarets. Swissinfo says most Senators believe the ban would damage the Switzerland's international reputation and the country's trade relations with Muslim countries. The right wing Swiss Peoples Party got enough signatures on a petition to force a vote on the proposal later this year.

Federal Suit On California's Textbook Portrayal of Hindus Settled

Last week, a federal district court in California entered an order settling a lawsuit that had been brought by a group of Hindu parents and their supporters challenging the way Hinduism was portrayed in textbooks chosen by the California state Board of Education in 2005-06. In a prior decision, the court dismissed all plaintiffs' claims except for its equal protection challenge to the textbook adoption process. A parallel state court case has already led to the state Board revising its book selection procedures. Now, according to today's Sacramento Bee, the federal lawsuit has been settled by the state paying plaintiffs $250,000 to CAPEEM (the plaintiff group), an amount that probably will not even cover their expenses. Today's Sacramento Bee reported on developments.

Bosnian Election Restrictions Challenged In European Court As Discriminatory

Last week, the European Court of Human Rights heard arguments in the case of Sejdić and Finci v. Bosnia and Herzegovina challenging provisions in Bosnia's constitution and the election act of 2001. (Court press release.) Haaretz also reports on the case brought by the head of Bosnia's Jewish community and the head of its Roma Council are challenging restrictions that limit candidates for the Presidency and the House of Peoples of the Parliamentary Assembly to members of the Bosnian Serb, Bosnian Muslim and Bosnian Croat communities. They argue that the restrictions violate Articles 3 (inhuman and degrading treatment), 13 (right to an effective remedy) and 14 (prohibition of discrimination) of the European Convention on Human Rights, as well as Article 3 of Protocol No. 1 to the Convention (right to free elections) and Article 1 of Protocol No. 12 to the Convention (general prohibition of discrimination).

Obama Speaks To Middle East Reporters About Religious Pluralism

After his speech in Cairo yesterday, President Obama met with Middle East reporters. JTA has a transcript of the session. While much of the Q&A focused on the Israeli-Palestinian question, one exchange allowed the President to expand on his notion of a religiously pluralistic society:

What I tried to communicate in the speech ... is that in an interdependent world like ours ... we have to have a mature faith that says "I believe with all my heart and all my soul in what I believe, but I respect the fact that somebody else believes their beliefs just as strongly." ... I can't force my religion on you.... Now, that doesn't mean that I can't make arguments that are based on my belief and my faith... If I'm a politician and I say I'm going to pass a law against murdering somebody, that's not me practicing my religious faith; that's me practicing morality that may be based in religious faith, but ... one that can translate into a principle that people of various faiths can agree on.

I think it's very important for Islam to wrestle with these issues.... [I]n Islam there's a debate about sharia and how strict an interpretation or how moderate an interpretation of that should be; or should that be something that is not part of the secular law. I don't presume to make that decision for any country or any groups of people. But I do think that if you start having rules that guarantee other faiths and other groups, or in the case of the United States, people with no faith at all, are somehow forced to abide by somebody else's faith, I think that is a violation of the spirit of democracy and I think that over the long term, that's going to breed conflict in some way. It will lead to some sort of instability and destructiveness in that society.

But, as I said, I think this is a important debate that has to take place inside Islam.... [T]he one thing I can say for certain is that people who justify killing other people based on faith are misreading their sacred texts. And I think they are out of alignment with God. Now, that's my belief. [T]hat ... is a debate that I think is settled for the vast majority of Muslims, but we have a very small minority that can be very destructive....