Virginia County's Schools Restore 10 Commandments Displays

In Giles County, Virginia, the Giles County School Board voted unanimously on Thursday to re-hang 4-foot tall copies of the Ten Commandments in the district's 5 schools and its technology center. AP reports that last December the Ten Commandments, which had hung in the schools next to a copy of the Constitution for at least ten years, were replaced by a copy of the Declaration of Independence. The move came after a complaint by the Freedom from Religion Foundation and an opinion by the school board's attorney that the Ten Commandments displays were unconstitutional. The school board's change of heart came after eight parents and pastors, supported by a large number of others, told the board that schools had a moral obligation to reinforce God's teachings. The Ten Commandments were back in the schools yesterday.

UPDATE: Delmarva Now reports that on Feb. 22 the Giles school board held a special meeting and voted to again remove the Ten Commandments from the schools.

Oregon Works To Acculturate Immigrant Groups In Light of Their Religious Beliefs

Today's Wall Street Journal reports at length on the efforts of Oregon authorities to deal with the religious beliefs of some 150,000 evangelical Christians from the former Soviet Union who live in the state. In 2009, Slavic Christians Oleksandr and Lyudmila Kozlov were arrested, and their seven children placed in foster care, after the oldest children called 911 to complain about physical beatings from their parents.  The parents said they were disciplining their children according to Biblical law, and that the government was trying to destroy the family because of its religious beliefs. The court eventually sentenced the parents to over seven years in prison for criminal mistreatment. Oregon's Department of Human Services has now begun to hold forums with different immigrant groups and the agencies in charge of resettling them to discuss American law as well as standards for disciplining children and spousal treatment.

Georgia School Board Votes To Keep Graduation At Church

Despite objections from Americans United for Separation of Church and State (see prior posting), a metropolitan Atlanta school board has voted unanimously to continue to hold graduation ceremonies in a local mega-church. The church charges only $2000 for use of its facilites, while secular venues would cost up to $40,000 to rent.MyFoxAtlanta and CBSAtlanta report that the Cherokee County (GA) school board voted unanimously on Thursday to keep the ceremony at First Baptist Church of Woodstock.Students particularly favored the decision, wanting to receive their diplomas at the same location their siblings had. Some parents and community members have started collecting funds to cover future legal challenges to the decision.

Utility Companies Sue Hamptons Villages Over Eruv

Following on a suit filed last week by the East End Eruv Association (EEEA) challenging as religious discrimination decisions by three municipalities in The Hamptons (NY) to prevent use of utility poles to create an eruv (see prior posting), this week two utility companies filed a federal lawsuit challenging the towns' interference with the utilities' agreement to permit EEEA to install the eruv.  An eruv permits observant Jews under religious law to carry items on the Sabbath that would otherwise be impermissible. The complaint (full text) in Verizon New York Inc. v. Village of Westhampton Beach, (ED NY, filed 1/18, 2011), alleges that the utilities are contractually obligated to permit installation of lechis (plastic or wooden strips) on utility poles to create an eruv, so long as the installation conforms to valid local laws. Plaintiffs seek a declaration that local laws being invoked to block the eruv are unenforceable. Courthouse News Service reported on the filing of the lawsuit. [Thanks to Steven H. Sholk for the lead.]

Challenge To DOMA's Impact on Tax Treatment of Long Term Care Policies Moves Ahead

In Dragovich v. U.S. Department of Treasury, (ND CA, Jan 18, 2011), a California federal district court allowed three California public employees and their same-sex spouses to proceed with a lawsuit challenging Sec. 3 of the federal Defense of Marriage Act and Sec. 7702B(f) of the Internal Revenue Code which interfere with plaintiffs' ability to participate in a state-maintained long term care insurance program.  Taken together, the challenged provisions deny favorable federal tax treatment to state employee long-term care plans that cover same-sex spouses. Finding that plaintiffs have standing to challenge the provisions, the court refused to dismiss plaintiffs' equal protection and substantive due process claims, holding:

Section three of the DOMA ...  impairs the states’ authority to define marriage, by robbing states of the power to allow same-sex civil marriages that will be recognized under federal law.... Plaintiffs have sufficiently stated a claim that section three of the DOMA bears no rational relationship to a legitimate governmental interest. The section does not preserve the status quo of the states’ authority to define marriage because it instead impairs their customary and historic authority in the realm of domestic relations.

The Silicon Valley Mercury News yesterday reported on the decision. [Thanks to Alliance Alert for the lead.]

9th Circuit: Ignorance of Religious Doctrine Does Not Support Adverse Credibility Finding In Asylum Application

In Li v. Holder, (9th Cir., Jan. 19, 2011), the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed an immigration judge's denial of an asylum application by Lei Li, a citizen of China who claimed he is a Christian and that he had been persecuted and had a well-founded fear of future persecution if he returned to China.  The immigration judge's denial was based on his finding that Li failed to demonstrate credible evidence that he is a Christian.  That adverse credibility finding was based primarily on Li's answer to two questions about Christianity. First, Li thought Thanksgiving was a Christian holiday.  Second, when asked about the difference between the Old and New Testaments, Li could only respond that the Old Testament was written in Hebrew while the New Testament was written in Greek.  The 9th Circuit held that "an IJ's perception of a petitioner’s ignorance of religious doctrine is not a proper basis for an adverse credibility finding." Judge Zouhary (sitting by designation) dissented, arguing that instead of reversing the adverse credibility finding, the court should remand for clarification and, if necessary, a supplemental hearing. Courthouse News Service reports on the decision.

Groups Protest Air Force Academy's Scheduled Prayer Luncheon Speaker

Yesterday the Military Religious Freedom Foundation released a letter (full text) it has sent to the Superintendent of the U.S. Air Force Academy objecting to the Academy's scheduling of former Marine Lt. Clebe McClary as the speaker for the Academy's National Prayer Luncheon next month. McClary, a professional motivational speaker, is described by Truthout as "a retired Marine, who was wounded in Vietnam and now serves the 'Lord's Army,' and believes that USMC (US Marine Corps) will always stand for 'US Marines for Christ.'" The MMRF letter said in part:

Indeed, it is precisely that incontrovertibly explicit and prestigious institutional approval of former Lt. McClary's non-inclusive religious "message" of fundamentalist Christian triumphalism, exceptionalism and supremacy which is the gravamen of the truly disgraceful decision by the Academy to honor him as the featured speaker at its National Prayer Luncheon event.

Several other groups have sent letters to the Academy supporting the MMRF's call for rescinding the invitation to McClary.

Court In India Hears Challenge To Hindu Ceremony Starting Courthouse Construction

In India yesterday, a two-judge panel of the Gujarat High Court heard arguments in a case challenging the constitutionality of a Hindu ceremony in which the Gujarat governor, the chief justice of the High Court and other judges had all taken part last year.  Articles last week in DNA and today in The Hindu explain the controversy.  The Gujarat government had acquired land on which to build advanced infrastructure for the court.  Before construction began, the traditional Hindu foundation-laying ceremony, known as bhoomi pujan, was held, apparently also as part of the court's Golden Jubilee celebration. In the arguments yesterday, petitioner's counsel asserted that since India is a secular state, no part of the government can sponsor a religious ceremony.

UDATE: According to an April 14 article in the Milli Gazette, the court dismissed plaintiff's challenge to the ceremony and "also fined the petitioner Rs 20000, doubting his bona fides."

Court Holds Exhaustion Not Required In RLUIPA Zoning Cases

In United States v. City of Walnut, California, (CD CA, Jan. 13, 2011), a California federal district court held that RLUIPA does not require plaintiffs in land use cases to exhaust administrative remedies before filing suit to challenge a zoning decision. The case involves a suit by the United States challenging the City of Walnut's refusal to grant a conditional zoning permit to a Zen Buddhist Center. The city's Planning Commission denied the permit and the city advised the Zen Center that an appeal would be pointless because of an upcoming municipal election. Nevertheless the Center sent the city a letter explaining its objections to the Planning Commission decision. While broadly rejecting an exhaustion requirement, the court went on to observe that even if private plaintiffs were required to exhaust their administrative remedies, the United States would not be bound by the Zen Center's failure to exhaust. Yesterday's San Gabriel Valley Tribune reports on the decision.

California High Court Denies Review In Release of Clergy Abuse Files

According to the Washington Post, yesterday the California Supreme Court denied review in Doe 1 v. Franciscan Friars of California, Inc. In the case, a California appellate court held that pursuant to a settlement in a clergy sex abuse case, various confidential files of nine alleged perpetrators, six of whom are still alive, can be released to the public. (See prior posting.) An attorney representing the clergy said that release of the files will have a chilling effect in the future on clergy being willing to be honest with therapists about child molestation incidents.

Britain's Home Office Bans Visit By Controversial Florida Pastor

Britain's Home Office has barred controversial Florida pastor Terry Jones from entering the United Kingdom.  BBC News reports that the pastor, who provoked international protests last year when his Dove World Outreach Center scheduled a "Burn a Koran Day" (see prior posting), had been invited to Britain by the group England Is Ours. He was scheduled to speak at a series of demonstrations against the expansion of Islam in the UK. A Home Office representative said: "Coming to the UK is a privilege not a right and we are not willing to allow entry to those whose presence is not conducive to the public good." [Thanks to Scott Mange for the lead.]

Islamic Scholars In Mauritania Ban Female Genital Mutilation

Magharebia reports that last week in the north African country of Mauritania, 34 Islamic religious scholars and national figures signed a fatwa banning female genital mutilation.  The document was issued at a seminar organized by the Forum of Islamic Thought, and attended by government and religious leaders. Dr. Sheikh Ould Zein Ould Imam, the Forum's secretary general and professor of jurisprudence at the University of Nouakchott, said: "There's no doubt that the fatwa will substantially curb [FGM], since it removes the religious mask such practices were hiding behind. We do need, however, a media campaign to highlight the fatwa, explain it and expound upon its religious and social significance." Magharebia had previously reported that the incidence of female circumcision in Mauritania had reached 72%.

Human Rights In China Is Part of Obama's Discussions With President Hu

Chinese President Hu Jintao is on a state visit to the United States.  At a joint press conference at the White House (full text), President Obama summarized his meeting with Hu, indicating that among the topics discussed was human rights, including religious freedom.  Obama said in part:

I reaffirmed America’s fundamental commitment to the universal rights of all people. That includes basic human rights like freedom of speech, of the press, of assembly, of association and demonstration, and of religion -- rights that are recognized in the Chinese constitution. As I've said before, the United States speaks up for these freedoms and the dignity of every human being, not only because it’s part of who we are as Americans, but we do so because we believe that by upholding these universal rights, all nations, including China, will ultimately be more prosperous and successful.

So, today, we’ve agreed to move ahead with our formal dialogue on human rights. We've agreed to new exchanges to advance the rule of law. And even as we, the United States, recognize that Tibet is part of the People’s Republic of China, the United States continues to support further dialogue between the government of China and the representatives of the Dalai Lama to resolve concerns and differences, including the preservation of the religious and cultural identity of the Tibetan people.

In the Q and A, reporters pressed President Hu on the issue of human rights, and Hu responded in part as follows:

China is always committed to the protection and promotion of human rights. And in the course of human rights, China has also made enormous progress, recognized widely in the world.

China recognizes and also respects the universality of human rights. And at the same time, we do believe that we also need to take into account the different and national circumstances when it comes to the universal value of human rights.

China is a developing country with a huge population, and also a developing country in a crucial stage of reform. In this context, China still faces many challenges in economic and social development. And a lot still needs to be done in China, in terms of human rights....

... [T]hough there are disagreements between China and the United States on the issue of human rights, China is willing to engage in dialogue and exchanges with the United States on the basis of mutual respect and the principle of non-interference in each other’s internal affairs....

Last week, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom had written Obama urging him to publicly raise religious freedom issues with Hu.

1997 Vatican Letter Questions Irish Church's Policy of Mandatory Reporting of Sex Abuse To Civil Authorities

The New York Times today reports on a 1997 letter (full text) from the Vatican's Apostolic Nuncio in Ireland to Irish clergy questioning  a document issued by the Irish Catholic Bishops' Advisory Committee on handling of clergy sex abuse claims.  The document titled "Child Sexual Abuse: A Framework for a Church Response" called, among other things, for mandatory reporting of priests suspected of abuse of minors to police or civil authorities.  The Vatican's letter included the following statement:

In particular, the situation of 'mandatory reporting' gives rise to serious reservations of both a moral and a canonical nature.

The letter also cautioned that Canon Law procedures need to be followed strictly in taking action against accused priests. Otherwise hierarchical appeals might overturn the action. Apparently one concern was that the Irish procedures were issued in a "study document" rather than in some kind of more definitive manner.  Abuse victims in Ireland and the United States say the 1997 letter could be important evidence in lawsuits attempting to hold the Vatican liable for abuse committed by local priests. A Vatican spokesman said that Vatican policy changed in 2001 when the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, headed then by the future Pope Benedict XVI, took over handling of sexual abuse concerns.

Quebec Refuses To Accommodate Kirpans At Hearing On Religious Accommodation

In Canada yesterday morning, a committee of Quebec's National Assembly held hearings on Bill 94, a proposed law to provide for reasonable accommodation of the religious and cultural practices of minorities.  However, as reported by CBC News, four members of the World Sikh Organization who were scheduled to testify were denied entry to the National Assembly building because they refused to remove their kirpans-- small religious ceremonial daggers worn against the skin under clothing.One member of the group, Balpreet Singh, called the refusal to accommodate Sikh practice "a bit ironic" under the circumstances. Security officials at the National Assembly consider the kirpan a weapon even though Canada's federal Parliament in Ottawa, as well as the federal Supreme Court, permit kirpans to be worn in their buildings.

New Alabama Governor's Christian Remarks Draw Criticism

Yesterday's Huntsville (AL) Times reports on the negative reaction to a statement made by Alabama's new governor, Robert Bentley, at a Martin Luther King Jr. Day commemoration on Monday. TPM covered the Governor's remarks delivered at Montgomery, Alabama's Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. Bentley said: "So anybody here today who has not accepted Jesus Christ as their savior, I'm telling you, 'You're not my brother and you're not my sister, and I want to be your brother.'" The Anti-Defamation League issue a particularly strong statement, saying in part:

It is shocking that Governor Bentley would suggest that non-Christians are not worthy of the same love and respect he professes to have for the Christian community.... Governor Bentley's remarks suggest that he is determined to use his new position to proselytize for Christian conversion.... If he does so, he is dancing dangerously close to a violation of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution....

Gov. Bentley's office issued a statement reading in part: "Gov. Bentley clearly explained in his inaugural address his belief that he is the governor of all of Alabama." [Thanks to Scott Mange for the lead.]


UPDATE: According to CNN, on Wednesday (1/19) Gov. Bentley apologized for his remarks both in a meeting with a Birmingham, Alabama rabbi and at a press conference following the meeting. Rabbi Jonathan Miller of Birmingham's Temple Emanu-El says the apology has put his concerns to rest.

Why The Disproportionate Religious Make-Up of Congress?

In a follow-up to a Pew Forum report earlier this month on the religious composition of members of the 112th Congress (see prior posting), yesterday's Dallas Morning News published an interesting set of responses from nine members of the clergy on why some faith groups have a greater presence in Congress than in the overall U.S. population.  In particular, Methodists, Episcopalians, Presbyterians, Jews and Catholics all have greater percentages in Congress than in the population as a whole. Explanations ranged from differences in theologies and traditions, to differences in education and affluence among different religious groups, to observing that some members of Congress adopt a religious affiliation label for convenience with very nominal adherence to the faith.

U.S. State Department Official Will Discuss Blasphemy Law During Visit To Pakistan

Dawn yesterday reported that U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy and Human Rights Michael H. Posner is visiting Pakistan this week.  One topic he plans to raise with the government, opposition leaders and civil society groups is U.S. concern over discriminatory or abusive use of Pakistan's blasphemy law. In an interview with the paper, Posner said: "We are reluctant to prescribe changes and alternatives. But we do believe that people should be free to practice their religion." Posner said he does not want to specifically focus on the controversial case of Aasia Bibi, a Christian woman who has been sentenced to death for blasphemy. But, he said: "We believe in the due process of law, i.e. a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty."

Settlement In Religious Discrimination Suit By Astronomer Against University of Kentucky

The Louisville (KY) Courier-Journal reported yesterday that the University of Kentucky has settled a lawsuit brought against it by Martin Gaskell, an astronomer who was was not selected for the position of founding director of a new observatory at the University. Gaskell claimed his rejection resulted from religious discrimination.  He was the leading candidate until his views on the theory of evolution became known.  He believes the theory has major flaws and has assigned students readings on intelligent design.  Physics and biology professors were concerned about his mixing of religion and science, and one professor feared linking of the University in the public mind with the Creation Museum, also in Kentucky. In the settlement, the University agreed to pay Gaskell $125,000 without admitting any wrongdoing. (See prior related posting.)

Supreme Court Denies Cert In D.C. Gay Marriage Referendum Case

Yesterday the U.S. Supreme Court denied review in Jackson v. D.C. Board of Elections, (Docket No. 10-511, certiorari denied 1/18/2011). (Order List.) In the case, D.C.'s highest appellate court, in a 5-4 decision, upheld election officials' refusal to accept a petition seeking an initiative vote to bar D.C. from recognizing same sex marriages. (See prior posting.) CNN reports on the denial of cert.