Religion Law Commons^™

International Child Abductions: The Challenges Facing America , Charles F. Hall

ExpressO

International child abductors often escape domestic law enforcement and disappear without consequence or resolution. International child abductions occur too frequently; in the United States alone, the number of children abducted abroad every year has risen to over 1,000. Currently, 11,000 American children live abroad with their abductors. These abductions occur despite international treaties and the Congressional resolutions that have significantly stiffened the penalties for those caught. Effectively combating international child abductions requires drafting resolutions that are acceptable across the diverse societies and cultures of the international community. Without such resolutions to fill the gaps of current treaties this problem will …

Reverse Moderate Relativism Applied: Third Generation International Human Rights From An Islamic Perspective, Jason G. Morgan-Foster

ExpressO

This article develops my reverse moderate relativist theory on the universality of human rights, which I proposed in an article forthcoming in the ILSA J. Intl. & Comp. L. In this prior work, I argued that the debate over the universality of international human rights norms is too constrained, and that the three most popular theories in the universality debate – universalism, strict cultural relativism, and moderate cultural relativism – are each conceptually flawed. Universalism is untenable, because it eliminates the tensions between various cultures simply by ignoring them. Strict cultural relativism is unsatisfactory, because it discredits the whole field …

Involuntary Particularism: What The Noahide Laws Tell Us About Citizenship And Alienage, Gidon G. Rothstein

ExpressO

This article argues that the Jewish picture of the Noahide laws, laws thought to apply to all non-Jews but particularly to those who would reside in a Jewish commonwealth, can shed light on how to balance a strong sense of citizenship with reasonable policies towards Lawful Permanent Residents. The article enunciates models for how to adapt the provisions of one legal system to another, shows that the Noahide system demanded that non-Jews accept fundamental aspects of a Jewish worldview in order to live among them, and then applies those lessons to argue for a reinvigorated view of American citizenship and …

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

University of San Diego Public Law and Legal Theory Research Paper Series

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 …

Nonestablishment Under God? The Nonsectarian Principle, Steven Douglas Smith

University of San Diego Public Law and Legal Theory Research Paper Series

Using as a point of reference the Ninth Circuit's assertion in Newdow v. United States Congress that "[a] profession that we are a nation "under God" is identical, for Establishment Clause purposes, to a profession that we are a nation "under Jesus," a nation "under Vishnu," a nation "under Zeus," or a nation "under no god," this essay attempts to disentangle three themes that the modern discourse of religious freedom often conflates, with baneful effect. We can call these the "public secularism" principle, the "neutrality" principle, and the "nonsectarian principle." The essay argues that the first two of these principles …

The Disenchantment Of Logically Formal Legal Rationality Or Max Weber's Sociology In The Genealogy Of The Contemporary Mode Of Western Legal Thought, Duncan Kennedy

ExpressO

Max Weber began his sociology of law with a description of the then present of Western legal thought, along with a brief summary of its previous stages. This appreciation begins with a summary description of the Western legal thought of Weber's time, as it looks from our present 100 years later, emphasizing the contrast between the mainstream of his time, now called Classical Legal Thought, and its critics in the social current. Part II presents Weber's sociology of law, comparing and contrasting his approach with that of the social current. The most striking thing about Weber's sociology of law, from …

Invasion Of The Clones: Animal Cloning And The Potential Implications On The Future Of Human Cloning And Cloning Legislation In The United States, The United Kingdom, And Internationally, Adrienne N. Calhoun

ExpressO

Cloning is an area of science that changes daily; with advances being made constantly. This technology has caused great controversy in the United States and across the world. The issue has raised religious, ethical, technical and legal concerns. This paper is broken into four parts in order to best address the complex area of cloning technology. Part one will be a review of the history of the science of cloning and the history of animal cloning. Part two will be a discussion of the risks and benefits of cloning. Part three will address ethical and religious concerns surrounding human cloning. …

International Law And Religion In Latin America: The Beagle Channel Dispute, M C. Mirow

Faculty Publications

In 1978, an Argentine diplomat proposed a method of defusing a territorial dispute that very nearly sparked off a war between Argentina and Chile, It,was an offer calculated to be rejected by Chile, and yet Chile’s immediate response was “Agreed” - a response so unthinkable to Argentina that within hours its military Junta revoked the power of the Foreign Minister and the President to sign the agreement it had just proposed. In December 1978, the countries were quickly moving towards a war that, if waged, would most likely have engulfed much of Latin America. The Vatican, however, intervened and brought …

Dissent And Disestablishment: The Church/State Settlement Of The New American Republic, Carl H. Esbeck

Faculty Publications

This paper has two aims. They are more in the nature of history than law. The first aim is to show that since the fourth century Western civilization has presupposed that there are not one but two sovereigns. Each has a jurisdiction of legitimate operation, and while there are areas of shared cognizance, there are other subject matter areas in which each is noncompetent to perform the tasks of the other. The second aim of this paper is to uncover historical figures that advanced a proposition concerning religious freedom that became the American church-state settlement.

Traditional Hindu Law In The Guise Of 'Postmodernism:' A Review Article, Donald R. Davis Jr.

Michigan Journal of International Law

Review of Hindu Law: Beyond Tradition and Modernity by Werner F. Menski

Commentary To Andreas Fischer- Lescano & Gunther Teubner. The Legitimacy Of International Law And The Role Of The State, Andreas L. Paulus

Michigan Journal of International Law

It will come as a surprise to many readers that Professor Teubner presented their fascinating contribution on regime collision to the Michigan Journal of International Law's Symposium on a panel devoted to "the Role of the State in International Law." Indeed, one could not imagine better devil's advocates than Professor Teubner and Dr. Andreas Fischer-Lescano. They propose a radical break with a concept of international law and order based on the autonomous will of Nation-States. Accordingly, legal regulation does not only, if at all, emanate from Nation-States, but from a panoply of other public and, mostly, private actors. Thus, the …

Two Wrongs Make A Right: Hybrid Claims Of Discrimination, Ming Hsu Chen

Publications

This Note reinterprets and recontextualizes the pronouncement in Employment Division v. Smith (Smith II) that exemptions from generally applicable laws will not be granted unless claims of free exercise are accompanied by the assertion of another constitutional right. It argues that when Arab American Muslims, and others who are of minority race and religion, bring claims for exemption from generally applicable laws on the basis of free exercise and equal protection principles, they ought to be able to invoke Smith II's hybridity exception, thus meriting heightened judicial scrutiny and increased solicitude from courts.

Assimilation, Toleration, And The State's Interest In The Development Of Religious Doctrine, Richard W. Garnett

Journal Articles

Thirty-five years ago, in the context of a church-property dispute, Justice William Brennan observed that government interpretation of religious doctrine and judicial intervention in religious disputes are undesirable, because when civil courts undertake to resolve [doctrinal] controversies..., the hazards are ever present of inhibiting the free development of religious doctrine and of implicating secular interests in matters of purely ecclesiastical concern. This statement, at first, seems wise and fittingly cautious, even unremarkable and obvious. On examination, though, it turns out to be intriguing, elusive, and misleading. Indeed, Justice Brennan's warning presents hazards of its own, and its premises - if …

Training For Justice: The Global Reach Of Clinical Legal Education, Richard J. Wilson

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

A Defining Faith: "True" Religion And The Establishment Clause, Jeffrey Shulman

ExpressO

This essay examines two trends in modern church-state law. Parts I and II review the history of the Supreme Court's Establishment Clause cases. It is a history that can best be understood as a series of jurisprudential maneuvers by which the Court has sought to make room for religion in civic life. The accommodations made by the Court to religious belief and conduct have, in effect, allowed for discrimination against non-religion, and have edged the court toward a nonpreferentialist perspective on disestablishment. But the Court’s accommodating attitude amounts to more than a preference for the many varieties of religious experience. …

Racism As "The Nation's Crucial Sin": Theology And Derrick Bell , George H. Taylor

ExpressO

The Article probes a paradox that lies at the heart of the work of critical race scholar Derrick Bell. Bell claims on the one hand that racism is permanent, and yet on the other he argues that the fight against racism is both necessary and meaningful. Although Bell’s thesis of racism’s permanence has been criticized for rendering action for racial justice unavailing, the Article advances an understanding of Bell that supports and defends the integrity of his paradox. The Article draws upon the work of Protestant theologian Reinhold Niebuhr and Niebuhr’s paradox that social action is both necessary and meaningful …

Secularism's Laws: State Blaine Amendments And Religious Persecution, Kyle Duncan

ExpressO

The State Blaine Amendments are provisions in thirty-seven state constitutions that restrict persons’ and organizations’ access to public benefits on religious grounds. They arose largely in the mid- to late-1800s in response to bitter strife between an established Protestant majority and a growing Catholic minority that sought equal access to public funding for Catholic schools. After the failure to pass a federal constitutional amendment—the "Blaine Amendment"—that would have sealed off public school funds from "sectarian" institutions, similar provisions proliferated in state constitutions. These "State Blaines" have often been interpreted, under their plain terms, as erecting religion-sensitive barriers to the flow …

Silence Of The Lambs: Are States Attempting To Establish Religion In Public Schools?, Linda D.W. Lam

Vanderbilt Law Review

The proper role of religion in public schools has been a topic of bitter debate for many years. While one group of individuals believes that there should be a complete separation of church and state, another group believes that religion should have an integral place in public education. Although both groups have looked to the circumstances surrounding the enactment of the First Amendment to support their respective positions, each has been unable to find clear, definitive support regarding the appropriate relationship between religion and public schools, as there was no public education system at that time. One major issue that …

Public Funding For Theological Training Under The Free Exercise Clause: Pragmatic Implications And Theoretical Questions Posed To The Supreme Court In Locke V. Davey, Katie Axtell

Seattle University Law Review

Part II of this Note presents the factual background and procedural history of Davey v. Locke. Part III discusses the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment. Section A provides a basic background on the Supreme Court's free exercise jurisprudence. Section B applies the Court's precedent to Davey, and concludes that the Ninth Circuit sidestepped a true "prohibition" analysis. Sections A, B, and C of Part IV discuss the differing neutrality examinations within free exercise, free speech, and establishment jurisprudence, respectively. Section D discusses the overlapping application of neutrality criteria in establishment and free speech funding cases. Section E concludes …

The Liberal Polity And Illiberalism In Religious Traditions, Paul E. Salamanca

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

It is in the nature of religious traditions to be somewhat illiberal. Indeed, a religion that does not require its adherents to affirm at least some belief is probably a logical impossibility. Christians, for example, must believe something about the nature of Christ. Even Unitarians, who advocate tolerance of all religions, must affirm a belief in tolerance.

Recently, and largely because of the events of September 11, 2001, enhanced attention has been paid to certain potentially illiberal aspects of Islam in the United States. The journalist Daniel Pipes, for example, has written about certain Moslem Americans who, according to his …

Freedom And Religious Tolerance In Europe, Peter Juviler

Michigan Journal of International Law

Review of Protecting the Human Rights of Religious Minorities in Eastern Europe (Peter Danchin & Elizabeth Cole eds.)

Fundamentalism From The Perspective Of Liberal Tolerance, Leslie C. Griffin

Scholarly Works

No abstract provided.

Darwin, Design, And Disestablishment: Teaching The Evolution Controversy In Public Schools, Jay D. Wexler

Faculty Scholarship

The controversy over teaching evolution in public schools is once again hot news. Ever since the Supreme Court decided in 1987 that Louisiana could not constitutionally require teachers to give equal time to teaching creation science and evolution, critics of evolution have adopted a variety of new strategies to change the way in which public schools present the subject to their students. These strategies have included teaching evolution as a "theory" rather than as a fact, disclaiming the truth of evolutionary theory, teaching arguments against evolution, teaching the allegedly nontheistic theory of intelligent design instead of creationism, removing evolution from …

Of Orphans And Vouchers: Nevada's "Little Blaine Amendment" And The Future Of Religious Participation In Public Programs, Jay S. Bybee, David W. Newton

Nevada Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Religion, Politics, And Feminist Epistemology: A Comment On The Uses And Abuses Of Morality In Public Discourse, Susan H. Williams

Indiana Law Journal

Symposium on "Law, Morality, and Popular Culture in the Public Sphere" at the Indiana University School of Law-Bloomington, April 6, 2001.

Religion, Politics, And The 2000 Presidential Election: A Selective Survey And Tentative Appraisal, Daniel O. Conkle

Indiana Law Journal

Symposium on "Law, Morality, and Popular Culture in the Public Sphere" at the Indiana University School of Law-Bloomington, April 6, 2001.

"Charitable Choice" And The Accountability Challenge: Reconciling The Need For Regulation With The First Amendment Religion Clauses, Michele E. Gilman

All Faculty Scholarship

Since 1996, Congress has included charitable choice provisions in several social welfare statutes to encourage the participation of religious organizations in administering government-funded social service programs. In this Article, Professor Michele Gilman discusses the lack of accountability to beneficiaries that occurs when public funds are given to religious organizations for secular programs, and she proposes solutions to this problem. As Professor Gilman explains, doctrines that constrain abuses of governmental discretion, such as administrative procedure acts and constitutional restrictions, generally do not apply when public programs are privatized. Moreover, religious organizations are often insulated from public scrutiny because of First Amendment …

Ministerial Exception And Title Vii Claims: Case Law Grid Analysis, Janet S. Belcove-Shalin

Nevada Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Revenue Bonds And Religious Education: The Constitutionality Of Conduit Financing Involving Pervasively Sectarian Institutions, Trent Collier

Michigan Law Review

The Establishment Clause - and particularly the issue of government funding of religious education - is one of the murkiest areas of Supreme Court jurisprudence. The Supreme Court has acknowledged as much, and the sharp divide in the Court's most recent forays into Establishment Clause territory illustrates the point that the current jurisprudential standards allow for a broad range of interpretation. There is some hope that the Supreme court will provide further clarification of its Establishment Clause standard in the near future. For now, however, it appears that the dominant mode of the Establishment Clause analysis is the examination of …

The Islamic Viewpoint On New Assisted Reproductive Technologies, Hossam E. Fadel

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article gives a brief overview of Islamic views on assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs). Islamic law is applied to ARTs to determine what may be lawful and/or moral and what may be impermissible. The article examines artificial insemination, in vitro fertilization, surrogacy and cloning.