Court Dismisses Claim That Security Clearance Revocation Was Based On Religious Issues

In Hegab v. Long, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 6203 (ED VA, Jan. 19, 2012), an employee of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) claimed that his security clearance was unconstitutionally revoked on the basis of his wife's Islamic religion, her constitutionally protected speech and her employment by an Islamic faith-based organization.  The court dismissed the suit on the basis that review of an agency's security clearance revocation is precluded by the Supreme Court's 1988 decision in Department of Navy v. Egan.

Maine Legislators, Officials Form Legislative Prayer Caucus

Maine Today Media reported last week that Maine state legislators and state officials, including the governor, have formed the Maine Legislative Prayer Caucus. Last Tuesday, over 150 people, including 50 mostly Republican and a few Democratic legislators, participated in a ceremony announcing the new group.  The group is affiliated with Pray USA, an initiative that seeks to "preserve the Judeo-Christian heritage of our nation and protect American religious liberty." Maine is the sixth state to create a formal group. The group which is nonpartisan will meet once a week to pray for fellow legislators and other state and national government leaders. Gov. Paul LePage said: "The separation of church and state is not a separation from public life. Always, our courts are taking symbols of religion out of our public house, but they can't take religion out of our hearts."

UPDATE: On Jan. 17 the Maine Legislative Prayer Caucus issued a Call To Prayer For Maine, and a few days later the Freedom From Religion Foundation sent the Governor, legislative leaders and other caucus members a memo (full text) pointing out "historical fallacies, contradictions and inaccuracies" in the Call To Prayer document.

No Tithing Exemption Allowed From Garnishment Order

United States v. Thomas, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5600 (ED CA, Jan. 17, 2012), is an action seeking garnishment of defendant's wages to pay off a $1.86 million balance on a restitution order growing out of her criminal conviction for embezzlement of funds from her employer. Among other claims, defendant sought to exclude 10% of her monthly pay from garnishment so she can use it to tithe to her church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The court denied this request, holding:

defendant has provided no legal authority or argument whatsoever supporting the proposition that the court's denial of a tithing exemption from garnishment would constitute a First Amendment violation. For this lack of legal support alone, defendant's request should be denied.

Additionally, defendant failed to provide factual support for the proposition that she would be prevented from attending her church or temple if she failed to pay her tithe. 

In Nigeria, Islamic Militants Kill Around 150 In Attacks In Kano

In Nigeria, the Boko Haram-- a militant group that seeks to overthrow the current government and create an Islamic state-- has killed dozens in city of Kano.  The number of dead is reported variously between 143 and 162.  BBC News reports that the deaths came in a series of explosions around the city that is under 24-hour curfew.  Among the targets were police stations, State Security Service headquarters, and passport and immigration offices.

Rabbi Speculates On Whether New White House Chief of Staff Can Continue His Sabbath Observance

Earlier this month, President Obama appointed Jack Lew as his new chief-of-staff after his former chief-of-staff, Bill Daley, resigned. The new chief-of-staff is an Orthodox Jew. An interesting opinion piece this week in The Forward by Rabbi Ethan Tucker explores whether and how Lew will be able to continue to observe the Sabbath in a position that generally required 24/7 activity. Tucker writes in part:

We live in a thrilling moment for Shabbat observance. It is a moment in which the general culture is truly ready to hear much of its message. And it is also a moment in which being observant is not a barrier to serving one’s country and society at the highest echelons of power. I am sure Jack Lew will find ways to avoid all unnecessary meetings on Shabbat and will be in a position to avoid certain concrete physical tasks like writing that have been core elements of Shabbat observance for millennia. But when he does find himself in the office on a Saturday — beckoned by the president to deal with issues of national concern — I hope he and we will remember Rav Sheshet’s [Talmudic] insight: The Jew’s commitment to infusing our world with Jewish values and leadership is ultimately a 24/7 endeavor.

HHS Reacts To Comments On Required Contraception Coverage By 1-Year Conscience Extension

Last August, the Department of Health and Human Services issued a controversial interim final rule (full text) under the Affordable Care Act requiring that contraceptive services (all contraceptive methods, sterilization and counseling) be covered by most insurance policies without deductibles or co-pays. (Rule summary). The rule exempted from this requirement only those non-profit religious employers whose primary purpose is the inculcation of religious values and which also both employ and serve only individuals who share the groups' religious tenets.  That exemption was criticized by a number of religious groups as being too narrow. (See prior posting.) Yesterday, in a news release, the Department of Health and Human Services announced that after reviewing comments submitted on the interim final rule, it has decided to change it only by giving an additional year (until Aug. 1, 2013) for compliance to non-profit employers who, based on religious beliefs, do not currently provide contraceptive coverage in their insurance plan. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops quickly issued a release quoting spokesmen who asserted: "In effect, the president is saying we have a year to figure out how to violate our consciences" and called the decision "nothing less than a direct attack on religion and First Amendment rights." The New York Times reports on the HHS decision and reactions of other groups.

Pentecostal Detention Officer Loses Most Claims About Pants-Only Policy

Finnie v. Lee County, Mississippi, (ND MS, Jan. 17, 2012), is a lawsuit brought by a former juvenile detention center security officer who was terminated after she insisted on wearing a skirt rather than the pants required by the sheriff's department uniform policy.  Plaintiff Crystal Finnie originally complied with the uniform policy, but refused to do so after she converted to the Pentecostal faith in August 2008.  In a 67-page opinion, the court dismissed Finnie's free exercise and free speech claims, as well as her Title VII religious and gender discrimination claims. However it permitted her to proceed with her claim that her dismissal was in retaliation for her filing an EEOC complaint. AP reports on the decision.

Pope Speaks To Bishops About Religious Freedom Threats In U.S.

Pope Benedict XVI yesterday addressed the bishops of Washington, DC and surrounding areas who are in the Vatican for their as limina visit. Zenit headlines its coverage of the talk: "Pope Backs U.S. Bishop's Concern About Religious Freedom." In his address (full text), the Pope said in part:

The Church’s witness, then, is of its nature public: she seeks to convince by proposing rational arguments in the public square. The legitimate separation of Church and State cannot be taken to mean that the Church must be silent on certain issues, nor that the State may choose not to engage, or be engaged by, the voices of committed believers in determining the values which will shape the future of the nation.

In the light of these considerations, it is imperative that the entire Catholic community in the United States come to realize the grave threats to the Church’s public moral witness presented by a radical secularism which finds increasing expression in the political and cultural spheres. The seriousness of these threats needs to be clearly appreciated at every level of ecclesial life. Of particular concern are certain attempts being made to limit that most cherished of American freedoms, the freedom of religion. Many of you have pointed out that concerted efforts have been made to deny the right of conscientious objection on the part of Catholic individuals and institutions with regard to cooperation in intrinsically evil practices. Others have spoken to me of a worrying tendency to reduce religious freedom to mere freedom of worship without guarantees of respect for freedom of conscience.

Here once more we see the need for an engaged, articulate and well-formed Catholic laity endowed with a strong critical sense vis-à-vis the dominant culture and with the courage to counter a reductive secularism which would delegitimize the Church’s participation in public debate about the issues which are determining the future of American society....

In this regard, I would mention with appreciation your efforts to maintain contacts with Catholics involved in political life and to help them understand their personal responsibility to offer public witness to their faith, especially with regard to the great moral issues of our time: respect for God’s gift of life, the protection of human dignity and the promotion of authentic human rights.

(See prior related posting.)

Study Says Polls Located In Churches May Impact Voter Behavior

According to a press release this week from Baylor University, a new study by Baylor researchers suggests that locating a polling place in a church may impact voting behavior.  The study by Dr. Jordan LaBouff and Dr. Wade Rowatt published in the International Journal for the Psychology of Religion found that those who answered surveys taken next to church buildings reported themselves more politically conservative and more negative toward non-Christians than did people who took the survey near government buildings. ABC News says that this study is consistent with a 2008 Pennsylvania one that found voters were more likely to support a school levy if their polling place was located in a school.

Religious Discrimination Claimed As Florist Refuses To Deliver To Successful Establishment Clause Plaintiff

A Rhode Island federal district court's Establishment Clause decision handed down last week is spawning new legal controversy.  In Ahlquist v. City of Cranston, the court held that in installing and maintaining a prayer mural in a high school auditorium, the Cranston School Committee violated the Establishment Clause. (See prior posting.) The Freedom from Religion Foundation wanted to congratulate the plaintiff in the case, 16-year old Jessica Ahlquist. However, as an FFRF press release and a turnto10 report indicate, three Cranston florists refused to deliver flowers to Ahlquist. Ultimately FFRF had to use a Connecticut florist.  In a formal complaint (full text) filed yesterday with the Rhode Island Commission on Human Rights, FFRF alleges that one of the florists in Cranston violated Rhode Island's Public Accommodations statute by discriminating on the basis of religion in refusing to fill FFRF's order.  FFRF alleges the discrimination was a result of plaintiff's atheism and FFRF's support of her.

Nevada Church Camp Complains Wildlife Project Cut Off Baptismal Stream

A church camp in southern Nevada is making a claim for $86,000 against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for damage stemming from the government's damming and rerouting streams that previously flowed through the 40-acre camp site.  A report yesterday from 8 News Now and a press release from the Nevada Policy Research Institute give the background on the claim, apparently filed administratively in anticipation of an eventual federal lawsuit.

Victor Fuentes, a Cuban refugee, started Solid Rock Christian Ministries and in 2007 bought an old ranch in Nevada's Armagosa Valley which he turned into a camp named Patch of Heaven. The church called the camp an "oasis for anyone seeking God" and used one of the two streams flowing through the camp for baptisms. However the camp site is completely surrounded by the federal Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge. In 2010, the federal government began rerouting streams in the Refuge. This had the effect of cutting off the streams in the camp that were used for both recreational and baptismal purposes.  In December 2010, a few weeks after the rerouting was completed, a storm raised waters over the banks of the rerouted streams and caused severe mud and water damage to the camp buildings.  While the claim appears to be for this damage, the camp's lawyers are emphasizing the loss of use of the stream for baptismal purposes, saying: "This was a river that was used to for free exercise of religion in baptism."

Air Force Office Changes Latin Motto To Refer To "Miracles" Instead of "God"

God and Country blog reported yesterday that the Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers (MAAF) has convinced the U.S. Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office (RCO) to change the logo on its official patch which, like many, apparently contain "in-jokes."  The RCO patch featured the motto: "Opus Dei Cum Pecunia Alienum Efficemus" (Doing God’s Work with Other People’s Money).  After what MAAF describes as "several months of needling," the RCO changed its logo to now read "Miraculi Cum Pecunia Alienum Efficemus" (Doing Miracles with Other People’s Money). MAAF describes the change as "a victory, but certainly nothing to write home about."

Challenge To Nevada's Limit On Who Can Perform Marriages Moves Ahead

In Martinez v. Clark County, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5313 (D NV, Jan. 18, 2012), a Nevada federal district court, while dismissing claims against the state attorney general, refused to dismiss claims against the county and county officials challenging the constitutionality of Nevada's statutes limiting who may perform marriage ceremonies.  Under Nevada law, in order to obtain a certificate to solemnize marriages an applicant must be affiliated with a religious organization. The court, finding plaintiffs had standing, allowed them to proceed with their claims that the statute violates the Establishment Clause, Equal Protection clause and Religious Test clause of the federal constitution, as well as the religious liberty protections of the Nevada constitution.

Indian Court Permits Individual Religious Ritual In Government Offices

According to the Times of India, the Madras high court has upheld the right of individuals to conduct Ayudha Puja or Saraswathi Puja rituals in their government offices. Petitioner, S P Muthuraman, in a public interest writ petition, had asked the court to ban all religious activities within government offices. The court held however:

Irrespective of religion, Ayudha Puja is a reverence shown by cobblers, weavers, farmers, autorickshaw drivers, rickshaw-pullers, carpenters, shopkeepers, chartered accountants, advocates, doctors etc., to objects which they use to earn their livelihood.... The form of worship or veneration to files and records at the close of the working day preceding the Ayudhua Puja or Saraswathi Puja holidays cannot be called as religious activity by the government, affecting the secular nature of the state.... In government offices, if an individual shows respect and reverence to the materials, books, files or records which are being handled by the individual, it will be referable to his individual freedom and there is nothing to show that it affects the secular nature of the state.

New B.C. Special Prosecutor Will Look At Charges Other Than Polygamy Against FLDS Members

As previously reported, last November a British Columbia trial court, in an advisory opinion, upheld most applications of Canada's anti-polygamy law, and that decision is not being appealed. (Globe and Mail, 12/21). Earlier this month, Richard Peck who in 2007 had been appointed special prosecutor in the polygamy case involving members of the FLDS church and had recommended against filing charges, said he did not want to be involved with the case any longer. (Globe and Mail, 1/9). Now according to yesterday's Globe and Mail, Vancouver lawyer Peter Wilson has been named new special prosecutor by the British Columbia Criminal Justice Branch to look into sexual offenses against minors in the FLDS town of Bountiful. However his mandate does not include looking into polygamy charges.

Church In Bankruptcy Need Not Disclose Membership List

In re Deliverance Christian Church, 2011 Bankr. LEXIS 5219 (ND OH, Dec. 1, 2011), involves the issue of how much information a church in bankruptcy must furnish to a bank that is a secured creditor of the church.  While the church agreed that the bank is entitled to financial information, at issue in the case is whether it is entitled to the church's membership list, or instead whether the church may furnish information in which contributors are identified only by numbers. The court held that membership lists are subject to heightened protection because of the chilling effect on freedom of association, membership and future giving that may result from their release. Since the bank had not shown a compelling need for actual names of members or contributors, the court ordered production in discovery of all documents relating to tithes or donations, including pledge commitment records, but the church was authorized to provide a sanitized version to protect the personal information of contributors.

Judge Questions Lawyers On Whether Lord's Prayer Is Christian

Yesterday's Wilmington (DE) News Journal reports on an interesting line of questioning raised by a Delaware federal district judge in oral arguments in Mullin v. Sussex County, Delaware.  The case is an Establishment Clause challenge to the opening of County Council meetings with the recitation of the Lord's Prayer. (See prior posting.) The U.S. Supreme Court has permitted legislative prayer where it does not proselytize or advance or disparage any one particular religion.  Sussex County argues that the Lord's Prayer is generic and does not advance a particular religious faith.  Judge Leonard Stark asked County Attorney J. Scott Shannon: "Is there any dispute that today, only Christians say the Lord's Prayer?"  Shannon replied that Jesus "was not offering a Christian prayer in the Christian tradition because no Christian tradition existed."  Shannon said that while the Lord's Prayer is commonly associated with Christianity, it came from Jesus who was a Jew. However plaintiffs' attorney Alex Luchenitser argued that "Our Father" is widely understood as a Christian way of referring to Jesus. Judge Stark said: "I'm afraid you all might have brought me a difficult case because there is no reference to Jesus or Allah" in the prayer.

Maldives Religious-Political Battles Lead To Competing Arrests

Religious-political battles in the Maldives are intensifying.  Minivan News reports that last Thursday opposition Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP) Deputy Leader Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed was summoned for questioning after the President's Office called for an investigation into "slanderous" remarks allegedly made by Ahmed.  It was charged that he accused the government of working under the influence of “Jews and Christian priests” to weaken Islam. Ahmed was then taken into custody Sunday night. Chief Criminal Court Judge Abdulla Mohamed, however, ordered Ahmed's immediate release, holding unconstitutional Section 125 of the Penal Code that permits detention for making a fabricated statement.  Now AP reports that on Monday the military in turn arrested Judge Mohamed "for corruption, in particular for allowing his judicial decisions to be determined by political and personal affiliations and interests."

UPDATE: AP 1/19 reports that the military still holds Judge Mohamed despite orders by the Supreme Court and the prosecutor general for his release. Maldives Vice President Mohammed Waheed Hassan also criticized the "extrajudicial arrest".

Cert. Denied By Supreme Court In 2 Prayer Cases

The U.S. Supreme Court today denied certiorari in two cases raising the issue of when public bodies may open their sessions with prayer. (Order List).  The first of the cases in which it denied review is Forsyth County, North Carolina v. Joyner, (Docket No. 11-546, cert. denied 1/17/2012). In the case, the 4th Circuit, in a 2-1 decision, held that  the prayer policy of a county commission violated the Establishment Clause even though the policy was neutral on its face. All congregations in the community were invited to send a religious leader to lead an invocation at one of the commission meetings. As implemented, however, 80% of the prayers referenced Jesus and no non-Christian religious leader ever offered the invocation. (See prior posting.) [corrected]

The second case in which the court denied review is Indian River School District v. Doe, (Docket No. 11-569, cert. denied 1/17/2012). There the 3rd Circuit found a school board's prayer policy to be unconstitutional, holding that the test for whether prayers opening school board meetings violate the Establishment Clause is the test used for prayer at school events, not the test for when invocations are permitted in legislative bodies. (See prior posting.) [Thanks to Rob Luther for the lead.]

Zimbabwe Court Says School Must Admit 4-Year Old Rastafarian

In Zimbabwe's second largest city, Bulawayo, a high court judge in a case brought by Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights has ordered school authorities to allow a a 4-year old Rastafarian boy to enroll in in class. Radio VOP reported yesterday that school authorities at Masiyephambili Junior School had barred the child because he was wearing his hair in dreadlocks. The court wrote in part: "There is no lawful basis for the Respondents to interfere with the minor child’s right to education based on his long hair that expresses his religious beliefs."