White House Holiday Card Sparks Differing Comments

The White House has mailed out its 2007 Holiday Card, designed by Hallmark (release). The blogosphere is filled with competing characterizations of it. The Huffington Post on Thursday reproduced the card and quoted Barbara Walters who said the card was the most religious one in recent memory. On the other hand, Wall of Separation on Friday pointed out that, as in past years, the card does not contain the word "Christmas" nor does it contain religious Christian symbolism. The painting on the card of the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden at the White House does show a lighted Christmas tree inside the White House. The card features a verse from the Prophet Nehemiah, and adds "May the joy of all creation fill your heart this blessed season 2007." The White House website features reproductions of White House holiday cards sent out by a dozen past presidents.

Pakistan's Ahmadis Will Boycott Election Claiming Discrimination

In Pakistan, the Ahmadi community says it will boycott the upcoming elections because of discriminatory action taken by the country's Election Commission. According to yesterday's Daily Times , the Commission has issued a separate list of Ahmadi voters. Ahmadis consider themselves Muslims. However, other Muslims do not, and Pakistan's Constitution defines them as non-Muslims. (Background from USCIRF and Wikipedia.) The Ahmadis see the Election Commission's move as an attempt to force them to acknowledge that they are not Muslims. (Release from Ahmadiyya Movement.) Friday's Daily Times has background on the Pakistan's move to a single electoral roll for all religious groups except the Ahmadis.

Hajj Begins; Freedom To Attend Measured In Several Countries

AFP reports that in Saudi Arabia nearly 2 million pilgrims began the Hajj today. The press is assessing religious freedom in several countries by examining the extent to which Muslims were allowed to travel to Saudi Arabia to participate. Today's New York Times reports that Russia (reversing restrictive Soviet policies) has permitted 26,000 pilgrims-- the full quota allotted to it by the Saudis-- to go. A government liaison office assists pilgrims with visas and transportation. The Russian press says that a number of government security service personnel are among the pilgrims to keep an eye on them. Russian government officials deny the report. The London Telegraph reports that Israel is allowing over 900 Palestinians to leave the Gaza strip to go on hajj. It also says that China has allowed 10,700 of its Muslim citizens to attend. However, in Turkmenistan, according to Forum 18, the government has permitted only 188 Muslims to go on Hajj, even though Saudi Arabia allotted the country around 5000 places. (See prior related posting.)

Florida Seeks Alternative Route To Get Voucher Amendments [Corrected]

After Florida's Supreme Court struck down the state's school voucher program in 2006, then-Governor Jeb Bush pressed to get a state constitutional amendment that would clearly allow vouchers that could be used by parents who send their children to religious schools. However the state Senate rejected Bush's proposal. (NSBA release, May 2006). Today's Palm Beach Post reports that now supporters are trying another route. The state's Tax and Budget Reform Commission, a body empaneled every 20 years, can propose state constitutional amendments to the voters. Commission member Patricia Levesque (executive director of Bush's Foundation for Florida's Future) is urging the Commission to propose two constitutional amendments-- one that would allow state funds to go to religious institutions and a second that would provide a parallel system of aid for private schools outside the public school system. (See prior related posting.)

German State Official Wants To Ban Burkas In Schools

Roland Koch, prime minister of the German state of Hesse, said in an interview on Sunday that he wants to ban female Muslim students from wearing burkas in schools. M&C reported yesterday, however, that Koch has no plans to ban students from wearing Muslim head scarves. Critics say that Koch is using religion to garner votes in next months election. They say they know of no school students in Hesse who wear burkas.

Recent Articles and Book of Interest

From SSRN:

• Larry Cata Backer, God(s) Over Constitutions: International Law, Religious Law and Transnational Constitutionalism in the 21st Century, (Mississippi Law Review, Vol. 26, 2007).

From SmartCILP:

• Monte Kuligowski, Does the Declaration of Independence Pass the Lemon Test?, 2 Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy 287-338 (2007).

Recent Book:

• Eve LaPlante, Salem Witch Judge-- The Life and Repentance of Samuel Sewall, (Harper Collins, Oct. 2, 2007), reviewed in the Philadelphia Inquirer.

ID Requirement Interfering With Clergy's Attempt To Encourage Marriage

Alabama's Child Support Reform Act, Code Ala. Sec. 30-3-194(c), requires marriage licenses to contain the Social Security numbers of both husband and wife. Today's Tuscaloosa News reports that most Alabama counties do not enforce the requirement, but Tuscaloosa County is one of the few that does. Now Catholic clergy in Tuscaloosa say that the requirement is interfering with their efforts to encourage couples to marry. Immigrants in the U.S. illegally, or those here legally but without a green card permitting them to work, are unable to obtain Social Security cards. Clergy in the Catholic Diocese of Birmingham have taken an interest in challenging the Alabama law. They say that couples who are sexually active but not married are barred from receiving Holy Communion. This, they argue, means that the government is controlling whether a couple can receive religious sacraments.

The Alabama statute, like that in other states, was enacted in order to comply with a provision of the federal child support enforcement statutes (42 USC Sec. 666(a)(13)). Last May in Buck v. Stankovic, (MD PA, May 1, 2007), a Pennsylvania federal district court issued a preliminary injunction barring Pennsylvania authorities from insisting that an individual prove his or her lawful presence in the United States as a condition of obtaining a marriage license.

Haj Begins Tomorrow-- Preparations Under Way

In Saudi Arabia, the Haj begins tomorrow. Yesterday's Arab News reports that King Abdullah arrived in Jeddah to supervise preparations for handling the expected 2.5 million pilgrims, which will include Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Violence Against Christians In India Decried

Friday's Christian Post reports that there have been 500 incidents of violence against Christians in India in the past 23 months. The Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) says that the violence is encouraged by Hindu groups such as Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (National Volunteers' Organization) and the Bharatiya Janata (Indian People's) Party. GCIC says that accusations of forced conversionary activity are often used by Hindutva forces as the excuse for attacking Christians.

Muslim Women Maintain Dress Code In High School and College Sports

The Associated Press today reports on the growing number of Muslim high school and college women who are participating in school athletic programs, while continuing to observe religious dress codes. An increasing number wear a hijab (head scarf) and long pants while playing basketball or participating in track and field. The National Federation of State High School Associations permits players to wear a head covering for religious reasons if it poses no danger to others and is not likely to come off during play. It also allows pants in place of shorts or skirts.

Recent Prisoner Religious Exercise Cases

In Adamson v. McDonough, (11th Cir., Dec. 12, 2007), the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals vacated a Florida district court's dismissal of a prisoner's First Amendment free exercise challenge to a rule against using correspondence privileges to advertise for pen pals. Plaintiff, a Southern Baptist, claimed that prison officials refused to mail 13 letters he wrote to Baptist churches and ministers to request "prayer partners and religious pen pals." The state failed to offer any explanation of the purpose of the challenged rule.

In Harris v. Moore, 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 91687 (ED MO, Dec. 13, 2007), a Missouri federal district court rejected Free Exercise and RLUIPA claims by a prisoner who is a member of the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World Church and is a minister ordained by the Universal Life Ministries Church. Plaintiff complained that he was limited to attending one religious service per week and was prohibited from receiving mail containing more than five pages of religious material.

In Robertson v. Kansas, 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 91266 (D KA, Dec. 10, 2007), a Kansas federal district court rejected a prisoner's First Amendment and RLUIPA claims that the refusal to permit him to have conjugal visits violated his religious belief in procreation.

In Trahan v. Carey, 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 89973 (ED CA, Nov. 27. 2007), a California federal magistrate judge dismissed an inmate's claim that his First Amendment rights were violated when he was punished for refusing to recite the "Center Point Creed" in a substance abuse program. The court found that the Creed is secular. Plaintiff was given an opportunity to file an amended complaint alleging that religious books were used in the program.

Christmas Tree Debated At Connecticut Senior Center

Manchester, Connecticut's unwritten policy of not placing Christmas trees in municipal buildings does not apply to the town's Senior Center, according to Town Manager Scott Shanley. According to yesterday's Journal Inquirer, this means that the Senior Center's advisory committee will decide on Wednesday whether or not to reverse the decision by Senior Center Director Eileen Faust not to put up a tree this year because it might offend members of non-Christian faiths.

Rivalry Between Two Menorahs On Public Property

In Brooklyn, New York, apparently no one has complained much about Chabad placing Hanukkah menorahs on public property. A release issued yesterday by Chabad outlines the good-natured rivalry between Chabad of Brooklyn Heights and Chabad of Park Slope over which group's menorah is the "biggest" or "tallest". One of the contending menorahs is in front of Brooklyn's downtown courthouse, while the other is at Grand Army Plaza at the entrance to Prospect Park.

City Arts Commission Funds Religious Statues At Churches

The AP yesterday reported on an interesting use of public funds by the Edmond, Oklahoma Visual Arts Commission. The Commission unanimously approved paying half of the $17,500 cost of a statue of Moses to be placed in front of First Christian Church in Edmond. It previously paid $3,187.50 for a statue of St. Francis that is displayed at the Church of the Good Shepherd. The Commission administers the city's Art In Public Places ordinance.

French High Court Upholds Ban On Keski In Schools

The Conseil d'Etat, France's highest court for review of administrative decisions, has upheld the 2004 expulsion from the Louise-Michel High School of Bobigny of three Sikh boys who insisted on wearing a keski (an under-turban). Punjab News Line yesterday reported that the decision, handed down December 5, finds that the keski is not a discreet sign but is an ostensible manifestation of religion which is prohibited in schools by a 2004 French law. The court held that the keski ban did not lead to an excessive infringement of freedom of thought, conscience and religion guaranteed by Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Since the ban applies to all religions, the court said it does not violate the anti-discrimination provisions of Article 14 of the ECHR. The schoolboys, represented by United Sikhs, plan to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights and to the United Nations Human Rights Committee. It is not clear how the decision of the Conseil d'Etat affects arrangements that have by now been worked out in many French schools that permit Sikhs to wear a keski. (See BBC News, April 19, 2005.)

North Carolina Court Bans Eid al-Adha Slaughter Arrangement At Farm

In Smithfield, North Carolina, a Johnston County judge yesterday issued a temporary restraining order preventing farmer Eddie Rowe from again opening his Princeton (NC) farm to Muslim families who wish to slaughter lambs for Eid al-Adha (Feast of the Sacrifice). According to the Raleigh News & Observer, Rowe charges individuals $160 for a lamb which they can personally slaughter on his 300-acre farm. State agriculture officials insist that Rowe must build a custom slaughterhouse to protect against disease and unsanitary conditions. Rowe says that would cost $740,000. Apparently, however, under North Carolina law (NCGS Sec. 106-549.27) individuals could take the lambs back to their own residences and slaughter them there under an exemption for non-commercial slaughter.

Rowe's attorney, Glenn Barfield, hopes that some of Rowe's customers will appear in court next week when a hearing will be held on whether to make the slaughter ban at Rowe's farm permanent. Those individuals could raise free exercise objections to the ban imposed by the court. Eid al Adha begins next Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Raleigh's Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation is offering local Muslims an alternative. They can donate money which the Foundation will use to have cows killed at a licensed slaughterhouse. The meat will be butchered and distributed to charities.

UPDATE: On Tuesday, the court rejected a request from several Muslim families in Wake and Johnston counties that it lift the injunction. Johnston County Superior Court Judge Tom Lock said that the order does not infringe the families' free exercise of religion because they can still slaughter their own lambs at a state-licensed facility. (News & Observer, Dec. 19).

Wiccan Symbol Joins Nativity Scene In Green Bay

As previously reported, Chad Fradette, City Council President in Green Bay, Wisconsin, obtained agreement from other city officials to install a nativity scene at City Hall, in sympathy with a smaller Wisconsin town whose nativity display was being challenged. Green Bay's resolution approving the nativity scene also provides that other religious groups can put up displays alongside it. Yesterday's Green Bay Press-Gazette reports that the city has received six requests from others. The first to actually be installed is a Wiccan symbol-- a 3-foot diameter wreath encircling a pentagram. Fradette, displaying broad ecumenical tolerance, said: "That’s pretty. I’m glad there’s something else up there." Another group has told Fradette that it will appear to sing Christmas carols before next Tuesday's City Council meeting begins. Council will discuss rules and guidelines for religious displays on City Hall property.

Canada's High Court Affirms Damages To Wife Who Was Denied A Jewish Divorce

In a 7-2 decision yesterday, Canada's Supreme Court held that an Orthodox Jewish woman could collect damages in a Quebec civil court for her husband's breach of an agreement to give her a Jewish divorce decree ("get"). In Bruker v. Marcovitz, (Sup. Ct. Canada, Dec. 14, 2007), the majority held that the promise to obtain a get, set out in the Consent to Corollary Relief entered into by the parties as part of their divorce proceedings, was a valid and binding agreement. The majority rejected the husband's argument that his freedom of religion assured by the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms protected him from having to pay damages for breach of a promise to carry out a religious act. The majority said:

Despite the moribund state of her marriage, Ms. Bruker remained, between the ages of 31 and 46, Mr. Marcovitz’s wife under Jewish law, and dramatically restricted in the options available to her in her personal life. This represented an unjustified and severe impairment of her ability to live her life in accordance with this country’s values and her Jewish beliefs. Any infringement of Mr. Marcovitz’s freedom of religion is inconsequential compared to the disproportionate disadvantaging effect on Ms. Bruker’s ability to live her life fully as a Jewish woman in Canada.

Justice Deschamps' dissenting opinion argued that the husband's agreement to give his wife a "get" is merely a moral undertaking, and even if it were enforceable, civil courts cannot be used to sanction an individual's failure to perform a religious act. Interestingly, both the majority and dissenting opinions reviewed precedent from other countries in reaching their conclusions, citing cases from France, Britain, Australia, the United States and Israel.

CBC News and the Montreal Gazette both report on the case which reverses the Court of Appeals decision and upholds the trial court's award of $47,500 in damages to Stephanie Bruker who for 15 years was denied a "get" by her former husband Jessel Marcovitz.

Danish Sikh Appeals Conviction For Carrying Kirpan

Today's Hindustan Times reports on the legal battle that has grown out of the arrest in Denmark of a Sikh youth for carrying a Kirpan. Ripudaman Singh was convicted and fined for violating a Danish law that prohibits carrying a knife or dagger over 2.5 inches long in public places, unless it is part of occupational activities. The Copenhagen City Court judge who convicted Singh said that there is no exception in Danish law for the Kirpan, even though Sikh religious beliefs require baptized Sikhs to carry it. Singh says he will appeal the conviction.

Religion In China Continues To Draw Attention

Religious freedom, or the lack of it, in China continues to make the news. The Christian Post yesterday reports on the mass arrest last Friday of 270 unregistered "house church" pastors who were gathering for a meeting in Shandong province. As of yesterday morning, 70 remained in jail. Today's USA Today reports on China's secret detention of Christian bookstore owner Shi Weihan who has refused to register his "house church". Meanwhile Earth Times today reports on the rapid growth of Buddhism in China. It says that the Chinese government has supported Buddhism and state-sanctioned temples in part to counteract the influence of the banned Falun Gong movement. Some critics say that large Buddhist Temples spend too much time promoting tourism and other non-religious activities.