Belarus Continues To Act Against Unregistered Churches

Forum 18 yesterday reported on the ongoing battles between the government and unregistered churches in Belarus. The Council of Churches Baptist refuses to accept registration requirements. Baptist Nikolai Poleshchuk was fined the equivalent of $745 (US) for running a Christian street library-- apparently the largest fine yet imposed for this type of violation. Another defendant received a warning from the court. Meanwhile the Belarus Supreme Court amended an earlier lower court order requiring Christian literature seized from Poleshchuk's street library destroyed. Instead it ordered that the literature be handed over to the state.

Obama's Former Pastor Says Jews, AIPAC Have Too Much Influence Over President

The Newport News (VA) Daily Press yesterday reported on a short, but controversial, interview by one of its reporters with Barack Obama's former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright. Obama publicly broke with Wright and his Trinity United Church Of Christ in May 2008 after he earlier criticized remarks made by Wright. Asked yesterday if he had spoken with Obama since the election, Wright said: " Them Jews ain't going to let him talk to me. I told my baby daughter that he'll talk to me in five years when he's a lame duck, or in eight years when he's out of office. ..." Wright also blamed Jews and AIPAC for Obama's decision not to send a delegate to the Durban Review Conference, and called Israel's actions in Gaza "ethnic cleansing."

Indiana Church Wins Tax Exemption Appeal

St. George Serbian Orthodox Church in Schererville, Indiana has prevailed in the Indiana Tax Court in its attempt to obtain a religious purposes tax exemption for a Cultural Center it built in 2001. In Lake County Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals v. St. George Serbian Orthodox Church, (IN Tax Ct., May 7, 2009), the court rejected the county's contention that the facility is merely a banquet hall. Evidence showed the Cultural Center was used for religious purposes 63% of the time. In a companion decision, St. George Serbian Orthodox Church v. Lake County Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals, (IN Tax Ct., May 7, 2009), the Indiana Tax Court held that a non-code statutory provision, apparently enacted solely to apply to St. George's case, cured any questions of the timeliness of St. George's application for an exemption. Today's Gary (IN) Post Tribune reports that taxes, penalties and fees totalling $470,599 were at issue in the case for the 3-year period covered by the decisions.

Texas Court Finds No Jurisdicion In Defamation Suit Against Church and Its Pastor

In In re Rick Godwin, (TX Ct. App., June 10, 2009), a Texas state appellate court applied the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine to find that civil courts lack jurisdiction over actions for defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress and fraud brought by a former member of Eagle's Nest Christian Fellowship Church against the church and its pastor Rick Godwin. Plaintiff Larry Nail had been a member and generous donor to the church. He began to criticize the church's financial expenditures. He resigned over the matter and began urging others to do the same. In response, Godwin read from the pulpit a statement drafted by him and the church's Board of Elders defending the church and accusing Nail of bribing members to leave the church. The court concluded that reading of the statement involved maters of internal church discipline and governance, and that Nail's challenge to the manner that church funds were spent would involve the court in an impermissible inquiry into religious doctrines and practices.

Today's San Antonio Express-News reports on the decision. The paper had previously detailed the alleged improper expenditures by the church, which included charter jet travel, expensive gifts and luxury hotel stays for Godwin, his wife and associates, some of whom set his compensation. Subsequently Godwin says he paid back personal expenses and changed church financial policies with the advice of a law firm. (See prior related posting.)

California Court Says Episcopal Church Owns Break-Away Parish's Property

In Huber v. Jackson, (CA Ct. App., June 9, 2009), a California appellate court held that the Episcopal Church and its Diocese of Los Angeles are the owners of the property of St. Luke's parish. The congregants of St. Luke's voted in 2006 to break away from the Episcopal Church and affiliate with the more conservative Anglican Church of Uganda. Applying "neutral principles" of law (as required by a recent California Supreme Court decision), the court found that St. Luke's had agreed to be bound by the governing documents of the Episcopal church, and this includes Canon I.7.4 which provides that all parish property is held in trust for the national church and its diocese:

as a matter of law that when defendants voted for disaffiliation, they denounced their prior promises to be subject to the governing documents of the national church and the diocese, abandoned their membership in the corporation, and lost the power and authority to be directors of the corporation, as they were no longer members in good standing of the Episcopal Church. Thus, their purported amendment of the articles of incorporation and bylaws to make the corporation part of the Anglican Church were a legal nullity, or ultra vires.

The court also rejected the argument that a 1981 decision collaterally estopped the Episcopal Church from asserting title to parish property.

House Subcommittee Holds Hearings On China's Persecution of Uighurs

Yesterday, the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Subcommittee held a hearing on on International Organizations, Human Rights and Oversight held hearings on "The Uighurs: A History of Persecution." Uighus are Muslims who live in China's East Turkestan, and have been the subject of cultural and religious oppression by the Chinese Communists. The full text of opening statements by Rep. Bill Delahunt's (D-MA) and Rep. Dana Rohrabacher's (R-CA) are available online, as are the prepared statements by Ms. Felice D. Gaer, Chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom; Ms. Kara Miriam Abramson, Advocacy Director, Congressional-Executive Commission on China; Mrs. Rebiya Kadeer, World Uyghur Congress; and Mr. Nury Turkel, Uighur Rights Activist and Attorney. The hearings came just as the nation of Palau announced that it would allow the 17 Chinese Muslim Uighurs now being held at Guantanamo Bay to "temporarily resettle" in Palau. (New York Times.)

Idaho Group Circulating Petition To Get Vote On Bible Course In Schools

In Idaho, a group calling itself Our Godly American Heritage is circulating an initiative petition seeking to get a proposed state constitutional amendment on the ballot. Tuesday's Idaho Statesman reports that the "Initiative Allowing School Boards to Permit the Bible to be Studied as Literature and for its Influence on History" would provide that school boards could offer elective non-doctrinal classes that focus on the Bible. Backers need 51,000 signatures to get the proposal on the ballot.

Ohio Science Teacher Sues School Board For Religious Discrimination

Mt. Vernon, Ohio science teacher, John Freshwater, has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the city school district's board of education and various school officials, alleging that attempts to fire him were prompted by the fact that he kept his personal Bible on his desk. The 16-count complaint (full text) in Freshwater v. Mount Vernon City School District Board of Education, (SD OH, filed 6/10/2009) was filed just as the June 18-19 administrative hearing on Freshwater's termination approaches. Yesterday's Mount Vernon News reports on the lawsuit filed by the middle school teacher, indicating that he is seeking $500,000 compensatory damages and $500,000 punitive damages.

The Board last year voted to dismiss Freshwater after a report by a consulting firm concluded that he taught creationism or intelligent design in class, told his class that anyone who is gay is a sinner, improperly used an electrostatic device to put a cross on the arm of a student, was excessively involved in the school's Fellowship of Christian Athletes and was insubordinate in failing to remove religious materials when ordered to do so by his principal. (See prior posting.) Freshwater's lawsuit alleges that the Board's action amounted to religious discrimination and a denial of procedural due process. The complaint also alleges a number of other causes of action, including defamation and breach of contract.

Singapore Court Sentences Christian Couple To 8 Weeks In Jail For Distributing Gospel Tracts

Both the Taiwan News and the Straits Times today report on the 8-week jail sentence imposed by a court in Singapore on a Christian couple convicted last month in the country's first full trial under the Sedition Act. Ong Kian Cheng and his wife Dorothy Chan Hien Leng were charged with giving copies of Christian publications titled "The Little Bride" and "Who is Allah?" to Muslims who were offended by them. The couple have been distributing Gospel tracts for 20 years. Police found 439 copies of 11 tracts deemed seditious at the couple's condominium. The sentencing judge said that the tracts "have the capacity to undermine and erode the delicate fabric of racial and religious harmony in Singapore."

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.)