Case in Point Sept/Oct 2024
September/October 2024In Maine, Battle Continues Over State Funding for Religious Schools
Can Maine require religious schools to adopt LGBTQ nondiscrimination policies as a condition of receiving state funds via a tuition assistance program? The answer, according to a recent federal court ruling, is “Yes—for now.”
This is the latest development in an ongoing saga that kicked off in 2022, when the U.S. Supreme Court said Maine must include religious schools in a program that allows students in remote areas to attend private schools at state expense. In that case—Carson v. Makin—the Supreme Court ushered in a new era in state funding for religious schools. For the first time, the Court said that states cannot exclude religious schools from a program that provides funds to similarly situated secular private schools. The attorney general of Maine responded swiftly to the Supreme Court’s ruling. He said that if the state was forced to send funds to religious schools, those funds would come with strings attached—a requirement that schools receiving funds adhere to LGBTQ nondiscrimination requirements in student codes of conduct and teacher hiring.
Earlier this year a Catholic school in Maine filed suit challenging this requirement, arguing that religious schools shouldn’t be compelled to compromise their religious identity in order to receive state funds. The court refused to grant the Catholic school’s request for an immediate reprieve, but acknowledged that the case “poses novel constitutional issues and . . . the Court has attempted to frame its opinion as a prelude” to the appeals court ruling.
Ukraine Passes Law Targeting Russian-aligned Orthodox Church
Lawmakers in Ukraine have cited national security and espionage concerns as justification for a new religion law that could lead to a ban on churches in Ukraine that are aligned with the Russian Orthodox patriarchate, or communion. The new law accuses the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine of being “an accomplice in war crimes and crimes against humanity” and of actively supporting Russia’s military in Ukraine.
Orthodox Christianity is the majority religion within both Ukraine and Russia, but recent years, even prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, have seen a growing schism between the Russia-aligned and Ukraine-aligned communions. More than two years of war have deepened suspicions among many Ukrainians that Orthodox congregations and clergy aligned with the Moscow patriarchate are actively aiding Russia’s war efforts.
Russian Orthodox leaders in Ukraine, however, deny these accusations and say that they have long since cut legal ties with the Moscow patriarchate. They argue, instead, that the new law violates Ukraine’s constitutional protections for religious freedom.
The Russian- and Ukrainian-aligned Orthodox churches represent the two largest Orthodox communions in the world. The decades-long religious tensions between these branches of Orthodox Christianity have featured in the current war in Ukraine. At times Russian president Vladimir Putin has framed the conflict in spiritual terms, saying that “Ukraine is not just a neighboring country for us. It is an indivisible part of our own history, culture, and spiritual space.” Patriarch Kirill, the leader of the Russian Orthodox patriarchate, has also publicly given his blessing to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Americans Still Value Free Speech (in Theory, at Least)
A recent survey found that Americans overwhelmingly support free speech—unless it’s speech they disagree with. The survey, conducted by researchers at Vanderbilt University, found that about 90 percent of Americans believe democracy is impossible without free speech. However, when given concrete examples of controversial topics or speakers—such as critical race theory, White supremacy, or pro-Israel or pro-Palestinian speakers—the percentage of those supporting free speech declined significantly. Only about half of the respondents agreed that anybody in America should be allowed to speak on any subject at any time.
Faith Groups Rally to Support Rastafarian Prisoner
Representatives of many different faith traditions are supporting a Rastafarian prisoner in Louisiana who alleges that prison officials violated his religious freedom rights. Damon Landor, whose Nazirite vow requires him to leave his hair untrimmed, objected to prison regulations requiring close-cut hair. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit had already ruled in Landor’s favor, recognizing his right to retain his dreadlocks. Prison officials, however, ignored the court’s ruling and forcibly cut Landor’s hair.
A coalition of Muslim, Jewish, Sikh, and Christian religious freedom advocates are now filing friend-of-the-court briefs in support of Landor’s claim for damages under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA). They argue that it’s vital for prisoners to have the ability to pursue monetary claims as a way of holding prison officials accountable for violating the rights of those under their control.
Will Bible Be Taught in Oklahoma Public Schools?
Every teacher in Oklahoma will be given “a physical copy of the Bible, the United States Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, and the Ten Commandments,” says state superintendent Ryan Walters. His directive also explains how the Bible should be taught in each subject from grades 5 through 12, including instruction on biblical influences in history, literature, music, and art. Critics of the new guidelines say it infringes on the rights of school districts to choose their own instructional material and on the First Amendment rights of non-Christian students.
Thumbs Down for Religious Charter School
Also in Oklahoma, the state supreme court has ruled against plans to create the nation’s first publicly funded religious charter school. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Oklahoma City had contracted with the State Charter School Board to establish and manage St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School. The archdiocese said the school, although state-funded, would participate “in the evangelizing mission of the church.” Oklahoma’s supreme court, however, has ruled that the contract violated both state and federal constitutional law, as well as the state’s charter school statute.