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The Pluralist Predicament: Contemporary Theorizing In The Law Of Religious Freedom, Steven Douglas Smith

Steven D. Smith

Religious pluralism is at once the cause of and a substantial impediment to theorizing about religious freedom. The purpose of theorizing in law is typically to impose order on an unruly collection of phenomena - of seemingly conflicting decisions, or doctrines, or legal arguments - and to do so by articulating and elaborating the foundational truths that govern the subject in question. In a condition of religious pluralism, however, theorists typically suppose that it is impermissible to appeal to contested religious beliefs. But these are the very beliefs that would provide the natural foundations for thinking about the proper relation …

Religion, Democracy, And Autonomy: A Political Parable, Steven D. Smith

Steven D. Smith

No abstract provided.

Justice Douglas, Justice O'Connor, And George Orwell: Does The Constitution Compel Us To Disown Our Past, Steven D. Smith

Steven D. Smith

Justice William O. Douglas's majority opinion in Zorach v. Clauson famously asserted that "[w]e are a religious people whose institutions presuppose a Supreme Being." What did Douglas mean, and was he right? More recently, in cases involving the Ten Commandments, the Pledge of Allegiance and other public expressions and symbols, the Supreme Court has said that the Constitution prohibits government from endorsing religion. Can Douglas's "Supreme Being" assertion be reconciled with the "no endorsement" prohibition? And does the more modern doctrine demand that we forget, falsify, or forswear our pervasively religious political heritage? This essay, presented as the William O. …

¿Puede La Fe Aportar Algo Al Derecho? La Respuesta De La Teología Jurídica, Juan Carlos Riofrío Martínez-Villalba

Juan Carlos Riofrío Martínez-Villalba

El artículo analiza la posibilidad de que la fe aporte contenidos a la ciencia del Derecho y al ordenamiento jurídico. La perspectiva no es histórica, sino jurídica y teológica. Consta de tres partes: (i) el planteamiento del problema del aporte de la fe; (ii) la delimitación de la teología jurídica, que es la ciencia llamada a resolver el problema; y, (iii) la respuesta al problema. En el fondo el análisis procura mostrar cómo la fe puede ser “fuente de derecho”. Termina señalando el alcance y los límites de esta fuente en el derecho sobre las cosas naturales y sobrenaturales.

Common Ground With A Common Faith: Dewey’S Idea Of The “Religious”, Bradley Baurain

Bradley Baurain

In A Common Faith, Dewey rejects organized religion and belief in the supernatural, instead arguing for an authentically “religious” attitude which this interpretive essay analyzes in terms of four propositions: (1) Knowledge is unified. (2) Knowledge is democratic. (3) The pursuit of moral ideals requires moral faith. (4) The authority for moral ideals is experience as explored via inquiry. The author responds from the perspective of his own religious faith and outlines conceptual relationships with modern spirituality in education writers. The common ground is that the “religious” must be seen as a significant way of being and becoming in education.

Book Review - Theresa Coletti: Mary Magdalene And The Drama Of Saints: Theater, Gender, And Religion In Late Medieval England, Louise D'Arcens

Louise D'Arcens

Theresa Coletti’s Mary Magdalene and the Drama of Saints is a persuasively argued and rigorously researched study that examines the late medieval English career of medieval Christianity’s “other Mary.” Coletti argues for the significance of the figure of Mary Magdalene within traditions of medieval insular piety dating back to Bede, and more specifically within vernacular East Anglian culture of the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. Taking as her main focus the early sixteenthcentury Digby saint play Mary Magdalene, Coletti succeeds in demonstrating the many striking ways in which “late medieval East Anglia’s feminine religious culture and commitment to sacred drama …

Legal Lines In Shifting Sand: Immigration Law And Human Rights In The Wake Of September 11, Daniel Kanstroom

Daniel Kanstroom

In March of 2004, a group of legal scholars gathered at Boston College Law School to examine the doctrinal implications of the events of September 11, 2001. They reconsidered the lines drawn between citizens and noncitizens, war and peace, the civil and criminal systems, as well as the U.S. territorial line. Participants responded to the proposition that certain entrenched historical matrices no longer adequately answer the complex questions raised in the “war on terror.” They examined the importance of government disclosure and the public’s right to know; the deportation system’s habeas corpus practices; racial profiling; the convergence of immigration and …

The Development Of Charity: Anti-Poverty Measures Of Ancient Jewish Law & Jurisprudence, William H. Byrnes Iv

William H Byrnes IV

This article describes the ancient Jewish practices, codified in Biblical law and later legal commentary, to protect the needy. The ancient Hebrews were the first civilization to establish a charitable framework for the caretaking of the populace. The Hebrews developed a complex and comprehensive system of charity to protect the needy and vulnerable. The Jews’ anti-poverty measures - including regulation of agriculture, loans, working conditions, and customs for sharing at feasts - were a significant development in the jurisprudence of charity.

The first half begins with a brief history of ancient Jewish civilization, providing context for the development of charity …

The Development Of Charity: Anti-Poverty Measures Of Ancient Jewish Law & Jurisprudence, William H. Byrnes Iv

William H Byrnes IV

This article describes the ancient Jewish practices, codified in Biblical law and later legal commentary, to protect the needy. The Jews’ anti-poverty measures - including regulation of agriculture, loans, working conditions, and customs for sharing at feasts - were a significant development in the jurisprudence of charity. The first half begins with a brief history of ancient Jewish civilization, providing context for the development of charity by exploring the living conditions of the poor. The second half concludes with a description of the Jewish laws, Mishnah and Talmudic commentary, as well as the practice and codification of Rabbinical teaching that …

Tradizioni Di Giustizia E Stato Di Diritto Vol. I Religioni, Giurisdizione, Pluralismo, Giancarlo Anello

giancarlo anello

Cultural diversity requires new forms of legal equality and traditions of justice are the main keys of understanding the demands of recognition that rise from the cultural communities in Europe. In the opening section, the book deals with the issue of epistemic links between law, religion and cultures. The following two parts develop a rigorous analysis of the religious traditions of justice by an interdisciplinary approach to comparative law and anthropology, reconstructing the matrix of meaning, the distinctive processes and the legal projections, in historical contexts characterized by the encounter (or the clash) of religious communities within their own cultural …

The Development Of Charity: Anti-Poverty Measures Of Ancient Jewish Law & Jurisprudence, William H. Byrnes Iv

William H. Byrnes

This article describes the ancient Jewish practices, codified in Biblical law and later legal commentary, to protect the needy. The ancient Hebrews were the first civilization to establish a charitable framework for the caretaking of the populace. The Hebrews developed a complex and comprehensive system of charity to protect the needy and vulnerable. The Jews’ anti-poverty measures - including regulation of agriculture, loans, working conditions, and customs for sharing at feasts - were a significant development in the jurisprudence of charity.

The first half begins with a brief history of ancient Jewish civilization, providing context for the development of charity …

The Development Of Charity: Anti-Poverty Measures Of Ancient Jewish Law & Jurisprudence, William H. Byrnes Iv

William H. Byrnes

This article describes the ancient Jewish practices, codified in Biblical law and later legal commentary, to protect the needy. The ancient Hebrews were the first civilization to establish a charitable framework for the caretaking of the populace. The Hebrews developed a complex and comprehensive system of charity to protect the needy and vulnerable. The Jews’ anti-poverty measures - including regulation of agriculture, loans, working conditions, and customs for sharing at feasts - were a significant development in the jurisprudence of charity.

The first half begins with a brief history of ancient Jewish civilization, providing context for the development of charity …

Soundtracks Of Acrobatic Selves: Fansite Religion In The Reception And Use Of The Music Of U2, Vaughan S. Roberts, Clive Marsh

Vaughan S Roberts

Conceptualizations Of Spirituality, Religion, And Faith: Comparing Biblical Notions With The Perspectives Of Protestant Christian Students At A Lutheran College, Christy M. Craft, Alyssa B. Rockenbach

Christy Moran Craft

As part of a larger investigation into the spiritual climate at one Lutheran college, we interviewed Protestant Christian students in order to compare their conceptualizations of spirituality, religion, and faith with biblical notions of those concepts. We found that the students' understandings of those concepts only loosely reflected general understanding within the higher education literature, and a significant disconnect existed between their conceptualizations of the relevant terms and those found in the Bible. In an effort to make meaning of our findings, we discuss existing literature about religious illiteracy as it relates to inherited faith and to the impact of …

Localizing Religion In A Jewish State, Yishai Blank Prof.

Yishai Blank

Cities in Israel are regulating religion and controlling religious liberty. They decide whether to close down roads during the Sabbath, whether to limit the selling of pork meat within their jurisdiction, whether to prohibit sex stores from opening, and whether to allocate budgets and lands to religious activities. They do all that by using their regular local powers as well as special enablement laws which the Israeli parliament enacts from time to time. The immediacy of these issues, the fact that the traditional powers—business licensing, traffic and road control, spending and more—of local authorities touch upon many of them, and …

Sacred Disputes? On The Ministerial Exception And The Constitution, Mark Strasser

Mark Strasser

Federal courts have long been hearing church disputes, for example, concerning conflicting claims regarding the rightful possession and use of church property. However, there is no clear understanding concerning the contours of the constitutional limitations on the courts when one of the parties in interest is a religious organization. The conflicting jurisprudence may be clarified in the 2011-2012 term when the Court hears and decides Hosanna–Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, although there is reason to be pessimistic that this will happen. This article lays out the relevant jurisprudence as presented by the United States …

The Humane Treatment Of Animals In Compliance With Abrahamic Law And Morals, Carmen M. Cusack

Carmen M Cusack

No abstract provided.

Suicide Killing Of Human Life As Human Right - The Continuing Devolution Of Assisted Suicide Law In The United Kingdom, William Wagner

William Wagner

SUICIDE KILLING OF HUMAN LIFE AS A HUMAN RIGHT

The Continuing Devolution of Assisted Suicide Law

in the United Kingdom

PROF. WILLIAM WAGNER, PROF. JOHN KANE, AND STEPHEN P. KALLMAN

ABSTRACT

Since the beginning of time, divine, natural, and positive law traditions of the United Kingdom reflected an inviolable standard that people should not assist in the killing of human life. This article reviews and analyzes the ancient inviolable benchmark, explaining why the common and statutory law of Britain historically reflected its moral reference point to prohibit assisted suicide. We then proceed to analyze a contemporary jurisprudential shift in Britain’s …

Religious Freedom In Private Lawsuits: Untangling When Rfra Applies To Suits Involving Only Private Parties, Sara Lunsford Kohen

Sara Kohen

Religious Freedom in Private Lawsuits: Untangling When RFRA Applies to Suits Involving Only Private Parties, for publication discusses when courts should apply the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (“RFRA”) in cases in which the federal government is not a party. Congress passed RFRA in reaction to the Supreme Court’s decision in Employment Division v. Smith. The Court held in Smith that the Constitution does not require religious exemptions from neutral, generally applicable laws—those that do not target religion and cover non-religious conduct to the same extent as religious conduct. By contrast, RFRA allows a federal law to substantially burden a religious …

Government Disapproval Of Religion, Jay Wexler

Jay Wexler

The Supreme Court’s “Endorsement Test” for evaluating the constitutionality of government sponsored symbols, displays, and messages regarding religion is notoriously controversial and has engendered enormous scholarly attention. In addition to government “endorsement” of religion, however, the test also prohibits the government from sending a message of “disapproval” of religion. The disapproval side of the Endorsement Test has not been subject to almost any scholarly discussion, which is not surprising given that until recently the courts have had no reason to entertain, much less sustain, challenges to alleged government disapproval of religion. In the last few years, however, due to a …

Religious Freedom In Private Lawsuits: Untangling When Rfra Applies To Suits Involving Only Private Parties, Sara Lunsford Kohen

Sara Kohen

Religious Freedom in Private Lawsuits: Untangling When RFRA Applies to Suits Involving Only Private Parties, for publication discusses when courts should apply the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (“RFRA”) in cases in which the federal government is not a party. Congress passed RFRA in reaction to the Supreme Court’s decision in Employment Division v. Smith. The Court held in Smith that the Constitution does not require religious exemptions from neutral, generally applicable laws—those that do not target religion and cover non-religious conduct to the same extent as religious conduct. By contrast, RFRA allows a federal law to substantially burden a religious …

Territory, Wilderness, Property And Reservation: Land And Religion In Native American Supreme Court Cases, Kathleen M. Sands

Kathleen M. Sands

In two trilogies of Supreme Court decisions, both involving Native Americans, land is a key metaphor, figuring variously as property, territory, wilderness, and reservation. The first trilogy, written by John Marshall, is comprised of Johnson v. M’Intosh (1823), Cherokee Nation v. Georgia (1831) and Worcester v. Georgia (1832). The second trilogy concerns Native American claims for religious freedom under the First Amendment and is comprised of Bowen v. Roy (1986), Lyng v. Northwest Cemetery Protective Association (1988) and Employment Division of Oregon v. Smith (1990). The Marshall trilogy attempted to legitimate the transformation of land from wilderness to territory and …

Multifaith Centre Building Design And Demonstration – Introduction To Asian Culture And Religion, Chuen-Tat Kang

Kang Chuen Tat (江俊达)

Understanding religious culture involves wide ranges of knowledge. Most religions are originated from Asia. In order to suit the need of Australian multifaith building concept that represent the faith available, namely majority of Christianity and other minority religions and philosophies namely Buddhism, Islam, Taoism, Confucianism, Shinto, Hinduism, Sikhism, Judaism and Bahai, understanding the architectural representation and symbol is necessary to help interfaith venue designer to better equipped with the knowledge that is required to integrate the identity of various culture into a single religious centre.

Introductory Note: Symposium On Lawyering And Personal Values – Responding To The Problems Of Ethical Schizophrenia, Samuel J. Levine

Samuel J. Levine

In recent years, legal practitioners and scholars alike have identified a growing crisis in the legal profession. Increasingly, lawyers feel dissatisfied with the roles they are expected to play and the conduct demanded of them. In particular, many lawyers see a widening gap between their personal values and those employed in legal practice. In response to the dichotomy between personal and professional values, some lawyers attempt to develop a corresponding dichotomy in their personalities, separating the “professional self” from the “personal self.” Such a response, however, may lead to a kind of “ethical schizophrenia,” a condition in which an individual …

Teaching Jewish Law In American Law Schools: An Emerging Development In Law And Religion, Samuel J. Levine

Samuel J. Levine

In recent years, religion has gained an increasing prominence in both the legal profession and the academy. Through the emergence of the "religious lawyering movement," lawyers and legal scholars have demonstrated the potential relevance of religion to many aspects of lawyering. Likewise, legal scholars have incorporated religious thought into their work through books, law journals and classroom teaching relating to various areas of law and religion. In this Essay, Levine discusses one particular aspect of these efforts, namely, the place of Jewish law in the American law school curriculum. Specifically, he outlines briefly three possible models for a course in …

Rethinking The Supreme Court’S Hands-Off Approach To Questions Of Religious Practice And Belief, Samuel J. Levine

Samuel J. Levine

In recent years, the United States Supreme Court has shown an increasing unwillingness to engage in deciding matters that relate to the interpretation of religious practice and belief. While the Justices have articulated valid concerns concerning these cases, courts should not allow these concerns to deter them from making decisions vital to the effective adjudication of Free Exercise and Establishment Clause cases. In fact, it appears that as a result of the Court's increasing refusal to consider carefully the religious questions central to many cases, the Court often tends to group together religious claims and practices, regardless of the relative …

The Competing Claims Of Canon And Civil Law To Accessing Diocesan Secret Archives, Stephen Braunlich

Stephen Braunlich

The fallout from Catholic clerics’ sexual abuse of children has continued, despite the best efforts of bishops to respond effectively, and has led to ongoing criminal and civil actions. Central to the protracted fights have been questions of compelled disclosure of diocesan secret archives: What records did the Church keep? Can they be discovered? Does the First Amendment provide protection? What is the role of privilege? Does the public have a right to everyman’s evidence, or is some protected because it comes from a religious organization? I ultimately conclude that while the rules of discovery and evidence do not protect …

Law, Ethics, And Religion In The Public Square: Principles Of Restraint And Withdrawal, Samuel J. Levine

Samuel J. Levine

In recent years, scholars have begun to recognize and discuss the profound questions that arise in attempting to determine the place of religion in the law and the legal profession. This discussion has emerged on at least two separate yet related levels. On one level, scholars have debated the place of religion in various segments of the public sphere, including law and politics. On a second level, lawyers have expressed the aim to place their professional values and obligations in the context of their overriding religious obligations. This article explores, from both an ethical and jurisprudential perspective, the question of …

Taking Prosecutorial Ethics Seriously: A Consideration Of The Prosecutor's Ethical Obligation To Seek Justice In A Comparative Analytical Framework, Samuel J. Levine

Samuel J. Levine

This article examines the complex nature of the prosecutor's broad obligation to seek justice through a consideration of the similarly broad directive in Jewish law requiring that "in all [of] your ways acknowledge [God]." While many have critiqued the broad directives governing a prosecutor's ethical duties, through this comparative analytical framework it can be seen that the prosecutor's broad ethical directive to seek justice serves as a workable and appropriate standard for prosecutorial ethics. In many ways, a prosecutor faces an ethical obligation unlike other attorneys. Ethical obligations require that a prosecutor forgo conduct that would increase the likelihood of …

“Charitable” Discrimination: Why Taxpayers Should Not Have To Fund 501(C)(3) Organizations That Discriminate Against Lgbt Employees, Austin R. Caster

Austin R Caster

Until now, the first amendment protection of religious liberty has allowed—and even publicly funded—discrimination against LGBT employees, but this article argues that Christian Legal Society v. Martinez changes that analysis. According to Bob Jones University v. United States, organizations that base admissions decisions on racial discrimination violate public policy and cannot receive taxpayer funding. Similarly, Christian Legal Society v. Martinez shows us that universities do not have to fund student organizations that discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation. Therefore, because discrimination based on an immutable minority trait bars taxpayer funding in one instance, this article argues it should also …