China Publishes Plan To Uphold Religious Freedom and Aid Religious Groups

Xinhua reports today that China's State Council Information Office has published the National Human Rights Action Plan of China (2012-2015).  The Plan, which  deals with a broad range of human rights, proclaims as to freedom of religious belief:

China upholds the principle of freedom of religious belief stipulated in the Constitution and strictly implements the Regulations on Religious Affairs to guarantee citizens' freedom of religious belief.

-- Protecting citizens from being forced to believe in or not to believe in any religion, and from discrimination due to religious belief.

-- Protecting normal religious activities according to law.

The Plan also promises financial support for a number of Buddhist and Islamic religious projects, im;oementing social security for religious staffs and improving the organization and management of services to Hajj pilgrims.  The Plan also calls for promotion of cultural exchanges between Chinese and foreign religious organizations.

Cert. Denied In Case On Student Distribution of Religious Material

The U.S. Supreme Court yesterday denied certiorari in Morgan v. Swanson (Docket No. 11-804) and the cross appeal in the same case, Swanson v. Morgan (Docket No. 11-941). (Order List, 5/11/2012). In the case, in 8 separate opinions, a majority of the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, sitting en banc, held (see prior posting) that because the law was not clearly established,  Plano, Texas school principals had qualified immunity in a lawsuit charging them with restricting elementary school students' distribution of religious literature to other students. A separate majority of the court held, however, that the principals' actions were unconstitutional. Education Week reports on the Supreme Court's denial of review, noting that the 5th Circuit's decision applied to only two of several incidents in the schools that were challenged-- one of which involved the attempted distribution of candy cane ink pens with a religious message attached.

State Trial Court Rejects Challenge To Pledge of Allegiance In Schools

In Doe v. Acton-Boxborough Regional School District, (MA Super. Ct., June 5, 2012), a Massachusetts trial court rejected a state constitutional challenge to the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance, including the phrase "under God", in Massachusetts schools at the beginning of each school day. No student is required to take part in the recitation. Plaintiffs claimed, however, that the phrase "under God" is a "religious truth" that contradicts their own atheist-humanist beliefs, and that daily recitation of the pledge discriminates against them by marginalizing them and classifying them as unpatriotic. The court held that the insertion of the phrase "under God" was a reference to the historical and religious traditions of the United States and did not turn the Pledge into a religious exercise nor violate anti-discrimination requirements. The Becket Fund issued a press release announcing the decision. In a press release yesterday, the American Humanist Association says that plaintiffs will appeal the decision.

Buddhist-Muslim Violence Rages In Myanmar

Reuters reports today on Buddhist-Muslim violence that broke out over the weekend in the state of Rakhine in Myanmar (Burma). At least 8 people have been killed as rival Buddhist and Muslim mobs torch large numbers of houses.  The fighting, which has spread to Sittwe (the capital of the state), reflects decades-long tensions between the majority Buddhist population and the long persecuted Rohingya Muslim minority.  The government regards the 800,000 Rohingya as illegal immigrants from neighboring Bangladesh and refuses to grant them citizenship, while the Rohingya claim they have been in Rakhine for centuries and want full citizenship. As democratic reforms have moved ahead under President Thein Sein, some Burmese in recent days have used their liberalized access to the Internet to express their anti-Rohingya feelings on social media sites (particularly on Twitter). The current violence was apparently triggered by the gang rape and murder of a Buddhist woman a week ago which was blamed on Muslims and killing by a Buddhist mob of 10 Muslims in return. Troops have been sent to the region and curfews are being imposed.

Controversial Pastor Hangs Obama In Effigy To Protest Marriage and Abortion Stances

Terry Jones, pastor of the small Gainesville, Florida Dove Outreach Center, who gained notoriety in 2011 for burning a copy of the Qur'an (see prior posting), has now created another controversy.  As reported last week by the Huffington Post (along with a photo), Jones has hanged President Obama in effigy on the front lawn of his church:

The effigy is suspended from a makeshift gallows with a noose of yellow rope, has a doll in its right hand and a rainbow-colored gay pride flag in its left.

In a telephone interview with The Huffington Post, Jones said the flag was meant to call attention to Obama's stance on same-sex marriage and that the baby doll is there because the president is "favorable toward abortion."...

There is also an Uncle Sam dummy standing at the base of the gallows outside the DWOC. Jones told HuffPost that the Obama effigy had originally been positioned to be hanging Uncle Sam when the display went up two weeks ago, but that the church changed the display on Wednesday.

The words “Obama is Killing America” are printed on a trailer nearby.

The U.S. Secret Service is investigating the situation. [Thanks to Joseph K. Grieboski for the lead.]

Parent Church's Default Judgment Against Break-Away Congregation Upeld On Appeal

In Church of God in Christ, Inc. v. Board of Trustees of Emmanuel Church of God in Christ, (KA Ct. App., June 8, 2012), a Kansas state appellate court affirmed a default judgment and award of damages to an international hierarchical church body in its suit against a break-away local local congregation and some of its members.  Even though the split off of the congregation arose out of a dispute over the authority of the bishop to appoint a pastor for the church, that issue, according to the court, is separate from the property dispute. The court held that while it does not have jurisdiction over  appointment of clergy, it does have jurisdiction to resolve the property dispute.

Recent Articles and Books of Interest

From SSRN:

• Steven H. Resnicoff, Jewish Law and the Tragedy of Sexual Abuse of Children: The Dilemma within the Orthodox Jewish Community, (Rutgers Journal of Law and Religion, Vol. 13, No. 2, 2012).
• Jack L. Sammons, Some Concluding Reflections - Recovering the Political: The Problem with Our Political Conversations, (Mercer Law Review Vol. 63, No. 3, 2012).
• Jeremy J. Patrick, Religion and New Constitutions: Recent Trends of Harmony and Divergence, (June 5, 2012).
• Zachary R. Calo, Faithful Presence and Theological Jurisprudence: A Response to James Davison Hunter, (Pepperdine Law Review, Vol. 39, p. 1001, 2012).

The June issue of Church & State has recently appeared online.

Recent Books:

• Michael I. Meyerson, Endowed by Our Creator: The Birth of Religious Freedom in America, (Yale Univ. Press, May 2012).
• Melanie Heath, One Marriage Under God: The Campaign to Promote Marriage in America, (NYU Press, April 2012).
• Caitlin Carenen, The Fervent Embrace: Liberal Protestants, Evangelicals, and Israel, (NYU Press, March 2012).
• Laurent Gayer and Christophe Jaffrelot (eds.), Muslims in Indian Cities: Trajectories of Marginalisation, (Columbia Univ. Press, May 2012).
• Wolfgang P. Muller, The Criminalization of Abortion in the West: Its Origins in Medieval Law, (Cornell Univ. Press, June 2012).

Recent Prisoner Free Exercise Cases

In Nance v. Miser, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 75307 (D AZ, May 30, 2012), an Arizona federal district court permitted a Muslim inmate to proceed against the prison's deputy director and its chaplain on his free exercise and equal protection challenges to the refusal to provide him with a Halal diet.

In Patterson v. Ryan, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 75289 (D AZ, May 30, 2012), an Arizona federal district court, in a suit by a Messianic Jew, rejected plaintiff's complaint that his request for kosher meals was fulfilled by serving him vegetarian meals for breakfast and lunch, and kosher meals for dinner. Only Orthodox Jews received 3 kosher meals. Plaintiff failed to show any burden on his religious practice.

In Muhammad v. Martel, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 76445 (ND CA, June 1, 2012), a California federal district court denied an inmate's habeas corpus petition, holding in part that derogatory references to petitioner's religion by the victim at his trial for stalking, and in the pre-sentence report, did not violate his free exercise rights.

In Erickson v. Lopez, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 76548 (WD WA, June 1, 2012), a Washington federal district court adopted a magistrate's recommendations (2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 76552, April 27, 2012) and dismissed a Muslim inmate's free exercise claim growing out of the prison's assignment of him to a cell with a Wiccan inmate who assaulted him after authorities refused to transfer him to a different cell. The court held that placing inmates of different religions together does not necessarily substantially burden either's free exercise.

In Foster v. Bhambi, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 77188 (ED CA, June 4, 2012), a California federal magistrate judge rejected a state prisoner's claim that his free exercise rights were violated when prison officials allowed coronary bypass surgery, which he had previously refused, to be performed on him.

In Glenn v. New Hampshire State Prison Family Connections Center, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 78689 (D NH, June 4, 2012), a New Hampshire federal magistrate judge permitted a Muslim inmate to proceed with free exercise, RLUIPA, establishment clause and equal protection challenges. He complained that there had been no Muslim Jum'ah services for three years. Authorities said there were no approved volunteers to conduct them; but there were state-paid Christian chaplains.  Plaintiff also complained that he had no Qur'an or other Muslim literature, that the prison had not accommodated his need for a Muslim diet, shaving practices, or prayer requirements and had not provided him with food for a Ramadan feast.

In Jordan v. Fuller, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 78338 (D CO, June 5, 2012), a Colorado federal district court adopted a magistrate's recommendation (2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 78378, Jan. 17, 2012) and dismissed the claim of an inmate who does not practice any particular religion that his free exercise, equal protection, 8th Amendment and due process rights were infringed when he was not permitted a vegetarian diet.

In Johnson v. Carroll, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 79380 (ED CA, June 6, 2012), a California federal magistrate judge refused to dismiss a Muslim inmate's free exercise and equal protection claims growing out of the confiscation of his religious diet card when he was transferred to a different prison.

Muslim Can Move Ahead With Challenge To Ban On Kufi In Juvenile Court

In Al-Qadir v. Wackenhut Corp., 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 75304 (MD TN, May 31, 2012), a Tennessee federal magistrate judge recommended against dismissing a free exercise claim by a Muslim who contended that a Wackenhut security guard denied him entry to, and subsequently removed him from, the Juvenile Court building in Nashville, Tennessee because he was wearing a Kufi. Plaintiff agreed to remove the kufi to be searched, but insisted on then wearing it again. Apparently the publicity caused by the filing of this case has caused the Juvenile Court to modify its policy for the future.

Religious Beards Continue To Violate Military and Police Grooming Standards

The clash between beards grown for religious purposes and grooming standards continues to make the news.  McClatchy Newspapers reported Friday that at Texas' Fort Hood, a military judge delayed the pre-trial hearing for accused mass killer Maj. Nidal Hasan because Hasan appeared in court with a full beard, grown for religious reasons. The beard violates the Army's grooming regulations, and Col. Gregory Gross said it was a disruption to court proceedings.  When the hearing resumes, possibly this week, Hasan will be required to watch it on closed-circuit television outside the courtroom if he does not comply with an order to "appear with proper military grooming standards."

Meanwhile, in New York City, a Hasidic Jewish Police Academy recruit was dismissed last Friday  for refusing to keep his beard, grown for religious purposes, trimmed to the 1 millimeter length permitted by police grooming rules. Fishel Litzman was only a month away from graduation, according to AP and the New York Daily News. [Thanks to Rabbi Michael Simon for this lead.]

Denmark Approves Full Wedding Ceremonies For Same-Sex Couples

AP and RT report that on Thursday, Denmark's parliament, by a vote of 85-24, approved a change to the country's marriage law that permits same-sex couples to be married in formal church weddings by the Church of Denmark. According to the Copenhagen Post, bishops will quickly develop a separate ceremony for such marriages. The change becomes effective June 15.  Previously, under a 1997 law, the state's Lutheran Church could only marry same-sex couples in a special short blessing ceremony at the end of a regular church service. Under the new law, any minister can refuse to conduct a same-sex ceremony, but the local bishop is then required to arrange for a replacement to do so. Also the new legislation automatically recognizes the 4,100 couples in registered civil partnerships as married.

State Department's New Format For Human Rights Report Triggers Partisan Debate On Religious Liberty

On May 24, the State Department released the 2011 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices in a new streamlined format that includes a country-specific executive summary and examples of the significant human rights problems reported in each country.  The report can be accessed for each country, or a customized report across any number of countries by human rights topic can be created online. A report by CNS News this week illustrates, however, that the new format has become part of the partisan battle over the Obama administration's commitment to religious liberty. In the new format, for each country under the section on "Respect for Civil Liberties," the subtopic of "Freedom of Religion" reads:  See the Department of State’s International Religious Freedom Report at http://www.state.gov/j/drl/irf/rpt/"  According to CNS, some are claiming that this move is part of an effort by the Obama administration to downplay international religious freedom, and particularly to hide violence directed at Christians and other minorities in Muslim nations in Africa and the Middle East since the Arab Spring uprisings of 2011.  The cross-referenced State Department religious freedom report only covers the period through December 2010.

Vouchers Are Benefiting Catholic Schools

In a long front-page article in today's weekend edition, the Wall Street Journal reports that Catholic parochial schools are making a come back, and "are benefiting disproportionately from the rise of vouchers, available in 10 states and Washington, D.C.," as well as from and tax credit programs. According to the report, vouchers benefit Catholic schools more that higher-priced private schools because Catholic schools are often in urban areas, they have space, and they have an established history in the community. When Indiana began a voucher program last year, over 2,400 students transferred from public to Catholic schools, and another 1,500 moved to other religious or private schools.

House Hearing Held On Bill Clarifying VA's Role In Veterans' Funeral Ceremonies

On June 6, a subcommittee of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs held hearings on a series of bills, one of which was HR 2720 (full text) which is designed to clarify the VA's role in military funerals.  Witnesses on Panel 3 and the submission of Rep. Poe at the hearing focus on this bill, which was prompted by a dispute last year over rules at the National Cemetery in Houston, including allegations that the Department of Veterans Affairs restricted religious content at ceremonies. (See prior posting.) The government claimed that the VA was merely attempting to honor the wishes of families. (See prior posting.) The bill would require the VA to make certain that a chapel displaying religious symbols chosen by the family is available at national cemeteries, and that access to the cemetery is provided to honor guards when requested by the family.  It also provides:

The Congress reaffirms the inviolable individual zone of privacy that each American possesses, including the deeply private act of choosing the content and creed of an individual's funeral, memorial service, or ceremony... [N]o official of the Federal Government, including the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, may interfere with the content and creed of the funeral, memorial service, or ceremony of a deceased individual, as expressed by the last will and testament of the individual or as determined by the family or agent of the individual....

The Washington Post reports on some of the questions raised by lawmakers during the hearing. [Thanks to Don Byrd for the lead.] 

Lawsuit Against USCIRF Claims Anti-Muslim Bias

On Thursday, a lawsuit was filed in federal district court in Washington, DC against the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom by a lawyer and expert on South Asian affairs, Safiya Ghori-Ahmad, who alleges that a permanent job offer with the Commission that she accepted was withdrawn because of anti-Muslim bias of two of the USCIRF commissioners. The complaint (full text) in Ghori-Ahmad v. United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, (D DC, filed 6/7/2012), recounts that plaintiff, formerly employed by the Muslim Public Affairs Council, was hired as an analyst by USCIRF’s executive director after staff interviews and review of her qualifications. However, after she left her prior job and before she began with USCIRF, the Commission, particularly at the urging of then-Commissioner Nina Shea, reneged on its hiring decision and instead offered her only a temporary 90-day position. According to the complaint:

Internal USCIRF email and discussions make clear that Ms. Ghori-Ahmad’s national origin and religion drove USCIRF’s ultimate decision to rescind its job offer. For example, Commissioner Shea, a particularly influential voice with long tenure on the Commission, wrote that hiring a Muslim like Ms. Ghori-Ahmad to analyze religious freedom in Pakistan would be like “hiring an IRA activist to research the UK twenty years ago.”

USCIRF allegedly retaliated further against Ghori-Ahmad when she filed a complaint about her treatment with the EEOC. The lawsuit claims that USCIRF's discrimination against plaintiff violates the Congressional Accountablity Act which was made applicable to USCIRF by the legislation passed last year that reauthorized the Commission.The Washington Post, reporting on the lawsuit, adds:

The allegations in the suit are the most explicit in a years-long series of allegations that commission leaders are biased against Muslims, specifically people associated with groups critical of U.S. foreign policy and who work for groups that fight anti-Muslim discrimination.

[Thanks to all who sent me leads on this.]

Kuwait's Emir Vetoes Increased Blasphemy Penalties, But Override Possible

RTT News reports that on Wednesday, Kuwait's Emir, Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, rejected legislation that had been passed by the National Assembly (Parliament) last month increasing the penalties for blasphemy. The Emir sent the bill back for reconsideration. Upon reconsideration, a 2/3 vote by the National Assembly requires the Emir to promulgate the law (Kuwait Constitution Art. 66) -- a result that seem likely since the bill originally passed by a vote of 40-6. (See prior posting.) The law would amend Article 111 of the Kuwait Penal Code to provide that any Muslim who mocks God, his prophets, messengers, Prophet Mohammad’s wives or the Qur'an may be subject to the death penalty or life in prison unless the defendant repents. If he does, then the judge is to instead impose a sentence of at least 5 years in prison and a fine equivalent to $36,000 (US). Lower penalties are provided for non-Muslim offenders. (See prior posting.) Currently, Section 111 provides only a one-year penalty for defamation of religion. (Background.)

9th Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Establishment Clause Challenge To Waldorf Schools

In a 3-page opinion in PLANS, Inc. v. Sacramento City Unified School District, (9th Cir., June 7, 2012), the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a federal district court's dismissal of an Establishment Clause challenge to two Northern California school districts that have created "Waldorf" schools. These schools use a holistic teaching method based on the educational philosophy of Rudolf Steiner, creator of the spiritually-based philosophy known as Anthroposophy. (See prior posting.) The 9th Circuit held that:

PLANS failed to meet its burden of showing that anthroposophy is a religion for purposes of the Establishment Clause. Although we express no view as to whether anthroposophy could be considered a religion on the basis of a fuller or more complete record, the record as it is before us is simply too thin to sustain that conclusion.

The court also held that PLANS had waived any argument that it could prevail on its Establishment Clause claim even without a determination that anthroposophy is a religion. The case has been winding its way through the courts since 1998.

USCIRF Elects Chair, Vice-Chairs

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom announced yesterday that Dr. Katrina Lantos Swett has been elected Chair of USCIRF.  Rev. William J. Shaw and Mary Ann Glendon were elected Vice-Chairs. Section 201(d) of the International Religious Freedom Act mandates election of a chair by a majority of the USCIRF members present and voting at the first meeting after May 30 each year.

CDC Issues Report On Risky Ultra-Orthodox Jewish Circumcision Procedure

Time Magazine reports that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a report yesterday on Neonatal Herpes Simplex Virus Infection Following Jewish Ritual Circumcisions that Included Direct Orogenital Suction — New York City, 2000–2011. The report finds that during the 12 year period covered 11 newborn males contracted HSV infection from the ultra-Orthodox Jewish practice of  metzitzah b'peh in which the mohel places his mouth directly on the newly circumcised penis and sucks blood away from the circumcision wound. This circumcision method increases the risk for neonatal herpes 3.4 times that of male infants who have not had direct orogenital suction. On Wednesday, the New York City Health Department issued a statement (full text) strongly advising against the practice of metzitzah b’peh.  It also announced that 9 New York hospitals have agreed to distribute a Health Department pamphlet, Before the Bris: How to Protect Your Baby Against Infection, to parents considering out-of-hospital circumcision of their newborn boys. The New York Health Department's warnings echo those it issued as early as 2005. (See prior posting.) [Thanks to Vos iz Neias? for the lead.]

Egypt's Constitution Drafting Panel To Be Split Between Islamists and Non-Islamists

In Egypt, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces has invited both chambers of parliament to meet next Tuesday to select the 100 members of the panel that is to draft the country's new constitution.  According to the Financial Times, this move came after agreement was reached on Thursday between the army and representatives of Islamist, liberal and leftwing parties in parliament on the makeup of the new drafting commission. Its membership will be split evenly between Islamists and non-Islamists, and will include members of parliament, judges, young people, women, public figures, Muslim clerics and church representatives.