Posted on by L&R Forum

Around the Web

Here are some important law-and-religion news stories from around the web:

  • In The Satanic Temple, Inc. v. City of Boston, the 1st Circuit ruled that the Boston City Council did not violate the 1st Amendment by choosing not to invite representatives of the Satanic Temple to deliver invocations at Council meetings. The court found no evidence of religious bias in the selection process as Council members choose speakers based on personal or community ties.
  • In StandWithUs Center for Legal Justice v. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a Massachusetts district court dismissed a suit against MIT, which alleged that the university showed deliberate indifference to a hostile environment affecting Jewish and Israeli students in violation of Title VI. The court found that MIT took various steps to address the escalating protests and threats, indicating that its response was not clearly unreasonable.
  • A Massachusetts district judge denied Harvard’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit by six Jewish students alleging the university failed to address pervasive antisemitism on campus, citing the university’s “deliberate indifference”. The decision is particularly notable as it comes shortly after the same judge dismissed a similar lawsuit against MIT (see above).
  • In Spillane v. Lamont, the Connecticut Supreme Court decided that parents cannot pursue constitutional challenges to the removal of religious exemptions from vaccination requirements because of sovereign immunity. However, the court allowed a statutory claim under the Connecticut Religious Freedom Restoration Act, stating that sovereign immunity does not block this type of claim.
  • Americans United for Separation of Church and State faces internal conflict and allegations of a troubled work culture. A staff union and former board members complain that the group’s leadership prioritizes publicity over the organization’s core mission of protecting the separation of church and state, which has resulted in resignations and accusations of a toxic environment.

Posted on by L&R Forum

Around the Web

Here are some important law-and-religion news stories from around the web:

  • The U.S. Department of Education determined that a school district in New Jersey violated federal law by asking students about their religious identities without parental consent.
  • In two separate cases concerning Covid vaccine requirements, the 7th Circuit ruled that claims for religious exemptions under Title VII may include secular as well as religious elements.
  • A federal district court in Maine rejected both parties’ motions for summary judgment in Pines Church v. Hermon School District, in which a church claims a school district discriminated against it, based on religion, by denying the church’s application for a long-term lease. The court ruled the case must go to trial.
  • In Gethsemani Baptist Church v. City of San Luis, the US Department of Justice filed a statement of interest indicating that a Baptist church could file an RLUIPA challenge to city zoning laws without first applying for a conditional-use permit.
  • In Athey Creek Christian Fellowship v. Clackamas County, an Oregon federal district court dismissed an RLUIPA claim concerning a requirement for a conditional use permit to build additions to a church building. The court held that requiring the plaintiff to reapply did not resemble what traditionally constitute substantial burdens under the RLUIPA.
  • In Frankel v. Regents of the University of California, a federal judge ordered the University of California to devise a plan to curb the antisemitic treatment of Jewish students on campus.
Posted on by L&R Forum

Around the Web

Here are some important law-and-religion news stories from around the web:

  • A federal district court in Colorado granted a preliminary injunction against the Town of Castle Rock, preventing the Town from enforcing zoning regulations that interfere with a church’s use of an RV and a trailer on church property for the purpose of providing temporary shelter to homeless individuals and small families. The court reasoned that the church was likely to succeed in its RLUIPA claim against Castle Rock, as the church satisfied its burden in pleading that Castle Rock’s zoning restrictions place a “substantial burden” upon the church’s religious obligation to provide for the needy on church property.
  • In Shlomo Hyman v. Rosenbaum Yeshiva of North Jersey, the New Jersey Supreme Court affirmed the dismissal of a defamation claim brought against an Orthodox Jewish school by a Judaic Studies teacher. The court held that the ministerial exception applied because the teacher conceded that his role constituted that of a minister in the yeshiva.
  • In Indiana, a man was sentenced to 24 months in prison and two years of supervised release for willfully transmitting, in interstate commerce, threats to injure other people and for choosing his victims because of their religion. For roughly five months, the defendant left eight voicemails using antisemitic slurs in threats to kill or assault Jews.
  • Representatives of over 39 countries and international organizations published the Global Guidelines for Countering Antisemitism, a set of legally nonbinding policies aimed at monitoring and combatting antisemitism in a way that can be adapted to a wide variety of national, regional, and cultural contexts. The guidelines include, but are not limited to, calls for political leaders to denounce antisemitism wherever it arises, calls for leaders to consider appointing national coordinators, special envoys, or designated officials to proactively address antisemitism, and emphasis on a need to enforce hate crime and anti-discrimination laws.
  • In Jewish Community Council of Montreal v. Canada (Attorney General), a Canadian Federal Court granted an interlocutory injunction against the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, preventing the Agency from enforcing animal slaughter guidelines that require slaughterhouses to go through a series of measures, including applying the three indicators of unconsciousness when slaughtering a food animal. The court reasoned that the applicants were likely to succeed in their claim that the guidelines infringed their right to freedom of religion under subsection 2(a) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
  • In India, representatives from the United Christian Forum (UCF), a human rights group based in New Delhi, recently met with Kiren Rijiju, Indian Minister for Minority Affairs, in an attempt to discuss recent increases in faith-motivated attacks against Christians, largely attributable to mobs who seek to make India a purely Hindu nation. According to UCF National President Michael Williams, the meeting yielded few promises, prompting UCF to state that the national government is doing little to curb police and mob brutality against Christians.
Posted on by L&R Forum

Legal Spirits 061: Is a Catholic Charter School Constitutional?

Source: KFOR

Last month, in a much-watched case, the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled that a new Catholic charter school, St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School, violates the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause–and, alternatively, that denying St. Isidore a charter does not violate the school’s rights under the Free Exercise Clause. In this episode, Center Director Mark Movsesian and Notre Dame Law Professor Richard Garnett debate whether the Oklahoma court got the decision right. Is a Catholic charter school constitutional? And are religiously affiliated charter schools a good idea in the first place? Listen in!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Posted on by L&R Forum

Around the Web

Here are some important law-and-religion news stories from around the web:

  • In Queens, NY, statues depicting Christ and the Virgin Mary were vandalized and decapitated outside of a Catholic Church, resulting in the perpetrator being charged with a hate crime. The incident took place outside of Holy Family Catholic Church in Fresh Meadows, Queens, with the attack being fully recorded by the church’s camera.
  • The Center for Religion, Culture, & Democracy recently released the 2023 iteration of their Religious Liberty in the United States survey, which measures each state’s statutory protections against religious discrimination. West Virginia finished last, whereas Illinois finished first, providing an insight into how cultural norms can misalign with formal legal protections.
  • In Chino Valley Unified School System v. Newsom, a California school district sued the state of California, claiming that recent legislation prohibiting parental notification of a child’s gender transition violated parents’ free exercise rights.
  • In Behrend v. San Francisco Zen Center, Inc., a Buddhist novice’s disability discrimination suit was dismissed due to the ministerial exception doctrine.
  • In L.F. v. M.A., a New York state trial court held that a Coptic Orthodox wedding was sufficient to render a couple civilly married for the purposes of a divorce action. The court held that the belief of both parties, as well as testimony from the officiating bishop, were enough to overcome the lack of formal marriage license.
Posted on by L&R Forum

Around the Web

Here are some important law-and-religion news stories from around the web this week:

  • In Rizzo v. New York City Department of Sanitation, a federal district court in New York allowed a sanitation worker’s Title VII failure-to-accommodate claim, based on anti-vaccination beliefs, to proceed, rejecting the city’s argument that the objections were not religious. The court also permitted the worker’s claim that the city failed to engage in cooperative dialogue under New York City Human Rights Law.
  • LifeWise, Inc., a Christian group that provides religious education to public school students, sued a parent for allegedly infringing on the group’s copyrighted curriculum. The parent is accused of fraudulently gaining access to and publishing LifeWise’s internal documents and curriculum on a website opposing the organization.
  • A New York court dismissed cross claims by two Kingsborough Community College faculty members who alleged the school retaliated against them for their anti-Israel views after being sued by Jewish faculty members for a hostile work environment. The court found no evidence of retaliatory actions by the school and stated the school had no duty to prevent the plaintiffs’ discrimination and antisemitism complaints.
  • Oklahoma’s state superintendent, Ryan Walters, directed all public schools to include Bible teachings, including the Ten Commandments, in their curriculums, stating such teachings are essential for historical and cultural understanding, without specifying grade levels. It is unclear if the superintendent has the authority to issue this directive under Oklahoma law.
  • President Biden announced the appointment of Dr. Mohamed Elsanousi to the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom. Dr. Elsanousi, Executive Director of the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers, has been influential in promoting vaccine equity and religious freedom in Muslim-majority communities.
Posted on by L&R Forum

Around the Web

Here are some important law-and-religion news stories from around the web this week:

  • Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys filed a notice of appeal in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in Youth 71Five Ministries v. Williams, which was dismissed in District Court of Oregon. The ministry is challenging state officials who blocked previously approved funding because the ministry requires its employees to sign a “statement of faith”.
  • In State of Tennessee v. Becerra, the Mississippi District Court issued a nationwide preliminary injunction. The Court barred the enforcement of the new Dept. of Education rule, which extended Title IX sex discrimination definition to discrimination based on gender identity.
  • The District Court in El Paso County, Texas, ruled against the Texas Attorney General in a case brought by Annunciation House, a nonprofit Catholic migrant shelter. The Court held that AG Ken Paxton requested documents unlawfully under the Fourth Amendment in an attempt to “harass” the Catholic shelter’s employees and migrants.
  • The Alaska Supreme Court refused to hold a state statute unconstitutional in State of Alaska, Department of Education & Early Development v. Alexander. The statute allows school districts to provide funding to families to obtain education materials from public, private, or religious organizations. The plaintiffs claim this statute violates the Alaska Constitution which prohibits public funding to be used for the benefit of religious institutions; but the Court found possible constitutional applications of the statute.
  • A Belgian civil court fined an archbishop and cardinal because they denied a woman registration for Deacon training in the Catholic Church. While the court stated the woman should be admitted for training, the question of later ordainment was not addressed.
  • More than 1,300 individuals died during the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia this year. Hajj is a mandatory religious pilgrimage for all Muslims in Mecca, Saudi Arabia; it is one of the 5 pillars of Islam. While deaths are a normal occurrence during the Hajj, the deaths this year were excessive, and 83% of the fatalities were unauthorized pilgrims.
Posted on by L&R Forum

Around the Web

Here are some important law-and-religion stories from around the web:

  • The U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari review of a Second Circuit decision upholding the constitutionality of Connecticut’s decision to repeal religious exemptions from its mandatory vaccination laws while retaining medical exemptions. The denial effectively allows the Second Circuit’s ruling to remain in effect, upholding Connecticut lawmakers’ decision to repeal religious objections out of concerns that upticks in exemption requests were coupled with a decline in vaccination rates in some schools.
  • A group of parents (acting on behalf of their children) filed a lawsuit in federal district court in Louisiana, challenging Louisiana’s recently enacted statute that requires the display of the Ten Commandments in every public school classroom. In the complaint, plaintiffs allege that the Louisiana statute imposes religious beliefs on public school children and unconstitutionally pressures students into religious observance and adoption of a state-favored religious scripture, all in violation of the Free Exercise and Free Establishment clauses of the First Amendment. Plaintiffs seek declarative and injunctive relief.
  • A federal district court in Florida held that a 2014 prayer vigil organized by the Ocala Police Department meant to encourage witnesses to come out and cooperate with police in the aftermath of a shooting spree that injured several children violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. Implementing the Supreme Court’s new Establishment Clause test set out in Kennedy vs. Bremerton School District, the court determined that the city’s involvement in “conceiving, organizing, and implementing the Prayer Vigil” constituted government sponsorship of a religious event, which violated the First Amendment.
  • In Drummond v. Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board, the Oklahoma Supreme Court violated the Oklahoma and US Constitutions by authorizing a Catholic-sponsored, publicly-funded charter school. The court ruled that state funding for the school violated anti-establishment provisions in both the state and federal constitutions.
    • Please read Center Director Mark Movsesian’s post about the case here.
  • Israel’s Supreme Court unanimously ruled that draft-age Haredi Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men are not exempt from the country’s mandatory military service, even if they are studying in a yeshiva. The Supreme Court also ordered that the Israeli government cease funding yeshivas unless their students enlist in the military.
  • In India, a family that recently converted to Christianity was attacked in the state of Chhattisgarh, resulting in the death of one woman. Christian leaders in India have spoken out against the attack as merely one in a growing number of attacks committed against Christians, largely attributable to mobs who seek to make India a purely Hindu nation. Christian leaders have also condemned police inaction as another reason for increased attacks.
Posted on by L&R Forum · 1 Comment

Legal Spirits 060: Memorial Day, the Knights of Columbus, and the National Park Service

Poplar Grove National Cemetery, Petersburg, Virginia

In this episode, Center Director Mark Movsesian interviews religion journalist Kelsey Dallas about the controversy that arose last month when the National Park Service refused to allow the Knights of Columbus to celebrate an annual Memorial Day Mass at a national cemetery in Virginia. The Park Service said it was enforcing the rules against “demonstrations”; the Knights said the refusal violated the group’s religious freedom. Who was right? And what does this controversy reveal about church-state relations in an increasingly secular America? Listen in!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Posted on by L&R Forum

Around the Web

Here are some important law-and-religion stories from around the web:

  • In French v. Albany Medical Center, the Northern District of New York found that a hospital did not violate the religious rights of a nurse who refused to receive a flu shot on religious grounds. The Court held that the requested accommodation was not reasonable due to her proximity to flu patients and vulnerable individuals.
  • In Bacon v. Woodward, the Ninth Circuit reversed the dismissal of a suit by firefighters who claimed their free exercise rights were infringed by the City of Spokane’s refusal to accommodate their religious objections to the COVID-19 vaccine. The Court held that the city’s termination of the plaintiffs while inviting potentially unvaccinated firefighters from neighboring departments for assistance constituted more favorable treatment for a secular group.
  • In Blackmon v. State of Missouri, a Missouri trial court held that the references to God and the belief that life starts at conception do not translate into various pro-life statutes running afoul of the Establishment Clause. The Court likened the mention of God to that found in the State’s Constitution, and refused to consider the latter belief as religious.
  • In Russia, a self-proclaimed witch was detained in court after disseminating literature calling for violence against clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church. She was also charged with insulting the feelings of religious believers as well as distributing extremist literature.
  • In Pakistan, a Christian man was killed by a mob of hundreds of individuals after being accused of desecrating a Quran. The United States Center for International Religious Freedom claims that the attack was inspired by Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, which explicitly provide for the death penalty upon anyone found to insult the Islamic faith.