If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein.The article is part of a series of Interviews with Principals in Supreme Court First Amendment Cases.
Objective coverage of church-state and religious liberty developments, with extensive links to primary sources.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Interview With Appellee In Famous Flag Salute Case Is Published
Top 10 Church-State, Religious Liberty Developments In 2009
There are at least two other Top 10 lists published this month on religion related stories. You may find it interesting to compare their picks, many of which differ a good deal from mine, though they were using somewhat different criteria. They are Don Byrds' Top 10 Religious Liberty Stories of 2009; and Religion Newswriters Top 10 Religion Stories.1. U.S. Catholic bishops are at increasing odds with President Obama over abortion. Very public disputes, sometimes splitting the Catholic community, erupted over Notre Dame's award of an honorary degree to Obama and over the USCCB's insistence on strict language in health care reform bills to limit abortion coverage.
2. Conservative Christian groups mount extensive but unsuccessful attempt to prevent passage of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act.
3. The Freedom From Religion Foundation becomes a major player in pressing for church-state separation by challenging a wide variety of practices, from sectarian prayers at city council meetings, to the tax code's parsonage allowance, to engravings at the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center.
4. The Rifqa Bary case requires Florida and Ohio courts to become involved in run-away teenager's claim that her Muslim father threatens her life because of her conversion to Christianity.
5. U.S. Supreme Court rules that a Utah city can refuse to allow the religious group, Summum, to put up a monument containing its "Seven Aphorisms" in a public park, even though a 10 Commandments monument and other monuments are already there.
6. Britain's new Supreme Court holds that a Jewish school's admissions policy using the traditional Orthodox definition of who is a Jew amounts to ethnic, and therefore racial, discrimination.
7. Courts around the country decide disputes over ownership of property after numerous conservative Episcopal parishes move to Anglican affiliations.
8. South Carolina's attempt to issue state-sponsored "I Believe" license plates is ruled a violation of the Establishment Clause.
9. France convicts Scientology and its leaders of fraud while German court limits tactics of German government against Scientology.
10. A Utah trial court rejects a settlement proposed by Utah's Attorney General in the complicated attempt to reform the FLDS United Effort Plan Trust, while the estate of a deceased leader of the polygamous FLDS Church seeks control of the $120 million trust.
UPDATE: Politics Daily has also published an interesting list of Top 10 Religion/ Politics Stories of '09.
Pending Lawsuit Challenges Favoritism To Catholic School In Use of City Athletic Fields
Recent Articles and Books of Interest
- Todd E. Pettys, Sodom's Shadow: The Uncertain Line between Public and Private Morality, (December 26, 2009).
- Neil James Foster, Freedom of Religion and Discrimination - Two Important UK Cases, (December 23, 2009).
- Legal Studies Research Paper Series, University of Wisconsin, No Altars: An Introduction to Islamic Family Law in US Courts, (December 16, 2009).
From SmartCILP:
- Symposium: The Natural Law in Protestant Political and Legal Thought. Articles by J. Daryl Charles, Michael DeBoer, Daniel R. Heimbach, Michael V. Hernandez, H. Wayne House, Mark Liederbach, Donald R. McConnell, Gilbert C. Meilaender, John Warwick Montgomery, Peter Judson Richards, Joe M. Sprinkle, Max L. Stackhouse, David VanDrunen and Ronald J. Wright. 2 Liberty University Law Review 607-995 (2008).
- Fr. Evaldo Xavier Gomez, Church-State Relations from a Catholic Perspective: General Considerations on Nicolas Sarkozy's New Concept of Laicite Positive, 48 Journal of Catholic Legal Studies 201-217 (2009).
- Piero A. Tozzi, Whither Free Exercise: Employment Division v. Smith and the Rebirth of State Constitutional Free Exercise Clause Jurisprudence?, 48 Journal of Catholic Legal Studies 269-301 (2009).
Recent and Forthcoming Books:
- David A. J. Richards, Fundamentalism in American Religion and Law : Obama's Challenge to Patriarchy's Threat to Democracy, (Cambridge University Press, Feb. 2010).
- Donald L. Drakeman, Church, State, and Original Intent, (Cambridge University Press, Nov. 2009).
Sunday, December 27, 2009
U.S. Missionary Crosses Into North Korea, Complicating Diplomacy
UPDATE: North Korea announced on Dec. 29 that it has custody of an American who crossed into the country illegally on Christmas Eve. Apparently this is Robert Park, whose uncle says this is good news because it means Park was not executed. (CP).
Catholic Church Says Historic Designation of Building Infringes Its Rights
Recent Prisoner Free Exercise Cases
In Oliverez v. Albitre, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 118555 (ED CA, Dec. 2, 2009), a California federal magistrate judge allowed an inmate to move ahead with his free exercise claim that the prison's
Native American Spiritual Leader failed to provide him with the prayer oil he ordered.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
No "Necessity" Defense In Trial of Accused Killer of Abortion Doctor
Court Rejects Free Exercise Defense To Bald Eagle Act Prosecution
[T]he repository and permit processes, while arguably inconvenient, do not impose a substantial burden on the defendant's right to practice his religion. The evidence established that a tribal member would have to wait ninety days to six months for delivery of feathers from the repository. This moderate delay does not deny the defendant a reasonable opportunity to practice his religion. Alternatively, the court finds that even if the Eagle Protection Act imposed a substantial burden, the government has met its burden to show that the repository and permit process are the least restrictive means to further the government's compelling interest in protecting and preserving the bald eagle population.
Catholic Hospitals Group Differs With Bishops On Senate Health Insurance Language
UPDATE: Catholic Health Association has told CNS 12/28 that the New York Times is wrong. There is not a split between CHS and the Bishops.
Friday, December 25, 2009
Federal Court Enjoins Illinois Hike In Fees For Lobbyists, Partly on Establishment Clause Grounds
[T]he ACLU has proffered figures derived from public records showing that the LRF has run an approximately $ 100,000 surplus for the last two fiscal years, during which the Secretary collected lobbyist registration fees one-third as large as the fees authorized in the Amended Act. .... These surpluses suggest that the Secretary may be unable to show that the three-fold increase in the lobbyist registration fee adequately relates to the costs of administering the Amended Act....
Moreover, on its face the statute appears to privilege religious over non-religious speech. The ACLU is therefore also likely to prevail on its claim that the Amended Act's exemptions for religious organizations and the newsmedia impermissibly discriminate against the ACLU based on the content of its speech. Indeed, by only exempting religious speakers who are "full-time employees of a religious organization" and who speak to the legislature about "protecting the right of the members [of that organization] to practice the religious doctrines of that church or religious organization" the statute also requires another content-based determination focused on religious speech.....
The ACLU's likelihood of success on its establishment clause challenge is equally plain..... On its face the content based determinations discussed above require the state to set the boundaries of a religious organization's exempt advocacy by inquiring into what the doctrines of a church or religious organization are and how the lobbying activities promote them. Requiring such an examination is likely to violate the establishment clause by fostering excessive government entanglement in religion....
Queen Elizabeth Delivers Christmas Speech
Each year that passes seems to have its own character. Some leave us with a feeling of satisfaction, others are best forgotten. 2009 was a difficult year for many, in particular those facing the continuing effects of the economic downturn....The London Telegraph's coverage of the speech links to a video of it.
It is 60 years since the Commonwealth was created and today, with more than a billion of its members under the age of 25, the organisation remains a strong and practical force for good....
We know that Christmas is a time for celebration and family reunions; but it is also a time to reflect on what confronts those less fortunate than ourselves, at home and throughout the world. Christians are taught to love their neighbours, having compassion and concern, and being ready to undertake charity and voluntary work to ease the burden of deprivation and disadvantage. We may ourselves be confronted by a bewildering array of difficulties and challenges, but we must never cease to work for a better future for ourselves and for others.
President Obama and First Lady Send Christmas Greetings
even in these tough times, there's still so much to celebrate this Christmas. A message of peace and brotherhood that continues to inspire more than 2,000 after Jesus' birth. The love of family and friends. The bonds of community and country. And the character and courage of our men and women in uniform who are far from home for the holidays, away from their families, risking their lives to protect ours.
Final Defendants Sentenced In Tax Fraud Scheme By Hasidic Rabbi
Appeals Court Affirms Conviction of Street Preacher For Disorderly Conduct
Orthodox Jewish Medics Say Volunteer Fire Company Refused Accommodation
Thursday, December 24, 2009
11th Circuit Hears Oral Arguments In Challenge To Park Rules Limiting Feeding the Poor
2nd Circuit: World Trade Center Recovery Did Not Violate Free Exercise Rights
One of the claims put forward by plaintiffs was that the City's recovery efforts violated their right to the free exercise of religion. The court rejected the claim, concluding that the City's efforts did not target religious beliefs and that the City had a compelling interest in clearing the World Trade Center debris efficiently and economically. The court also rejected plaintiffs' due process claims, holding that they have no property interest in unidentifiable human remains, and that their dissatisfaction with the way the city handled recovery efforts did not rise to the level of a constitutional violation. The court concluded:
On a human level, plaintiffs' claims are among the most compelling we have ever been called on to consider. They have endured unimaginable anguish, and they seek nothing more than the knowledge that their loved ones lie in rest at a place of their choosing. We regret that we cannot bring them solace...The decision was handed down only a week after the court heard oral arguments in the case. The New York Times reported on the arguments.
Police Protect Atheist Sign In Illinois Capitol
At the time of the winter solstice, let reason prevail. There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is just myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds.CBS News reports that William J. Kelly, a conservative activist and candidate for state comptroller, yesterday attempted to take down the sign, but was briefly detained and told to leave the building by Capitol police (who wrote up an incident report) when he turned the sign around so that it was face down. Kelly says the sign constitutes "hate speech" and mocks religion. He says that anyone going to look at the Christmas tree would be confronted by the sign because of its placement. Capitol police say it is their duty to protect any property in the Capitol building. [Thanks to Scott Mange for the lead.]