Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Narrow Boundaries of Religious Expression
Freedom House's Center for Religious Freedom defines freedom of religion as:
"Religious freedom is pivotal to a free society. Thomas Jefferson called it the “first freedom.” It is enshrined in the first clause of the first amendment of the U.S. Constitution. And it is first in another sense: freedom of thought, conscience and religion is the prerequisite for the exercise of all other basic human rights. In theory and practice, free expression, freedom of press and freedom of association depend on the prior guarantee of a free conscience. The historical reality is that where religious freedom is denied, so too are other basic human rights.
Religious freedom has two dimensions. It belongs to individuals and also to religious groups. It includes a person’s right to walk down the street wearing a cross, a yarmulke or a headscarf, or not to do so, and to express and live out one’s beliefs in society. It also includes the rights of groups to worship God as they wish in community, to run schools, hospitals and other institutions, to publish and possess sacred literature, and order their internal affairs.
In recent decades, the institutional dimension of religious freedom has proved crucial in opening up social space..."
As appearing in bold (our emphasis), these concepts hold specific meanings and fields of application in French society.
By and large, French society is highly fragmented. People often talk about the "public sphere" and the "private sphere", with the two having little communication. Religious freedom is seen by most Frenchmen as belonging exclusively to the private sphere, thus, making it very difficult for people to express their faith in public venues : education, work, public meetings, etc.
Also, worship is commonly understood (and legislated) to be limited to the religious facility, thus making it difficult for religious organizations to engage the society; tax-exempt and tax-deductible status is not granted to organizations engaging in activities other than the narrowly defined French meaning of worship.
While French authorities do not generally prosecute religious organizations that do not scrupulously follow the legal guidelines for religious activity, churches often are in violation of the law (e.g. a 2002 finance law reform requires all organizations to have a large amount of cash in treasury to have someone on staff, a stringent requirement which most churches cannot meet), and may be wrongfully associated to cults--as a striking example, my request of renting a hall in a Catholic spiritual center for a Thanksgiving meal was temporarily thought of as a cult simply because we give thanks to God!
(You can read a 2006 in-depth analysis of the religious freedom in France by the US Department of State)
"Religious freedom is pivotal to a free society. Thomas Jefferson called it the “first freedom.” It is enshrined in the first clause of the first amendment of the U.S. Constitution. And it is first in another sense: freedom of thought, conscience and religion is the prerequisite for the exercise of all other basic human rights. In theory and practice, free expression, freedom of press and freedom of association depend on the prior guarantee of a free conscience. The historical reality is that where religious freedom is denied, so too are other basic human rights.
Religious freedom has two dimensions. It belongs to individuals and also to religious groups. It includes a person’s right to walk down the street wearing a cross, a yarmulke or a headscarf, or not to do so, and to express and live out one’s beliefs in society. It also includes the rights of groups to worship God as they wish in community, to run schools, hospitals and other institutions, to publish and possess sacred literature, and order their internal affairs.
In recent decades, the institutional dimension of religious freedom has proved crucial in opening up social space..."
As appearing in bold (our emphasis), these concepts hold specific meanings and fields of application in French society.
By and large, French society is highly fragmented. People often talk about the "public sphere" and the "private sphere", with the two having little communication. Religious freedom is seen by most Frenchmen as belonging exclusively to the private sphere, thus, making it very difficult for people to express their faith in public venues : education, work, public meetings, etc.
Also, worship is commonly understood (and legislated) to be limited to the religious facility, thus making it difficult for religious organizations to engage the society; tax-exempt and tax-deductible status is not granted to organizations engaging in activities other than the narrowly defined French meaning of worship.
While French authorities do not generally prosecute religious organizations that do not scrupulously follow the legal guidelines for religious activity, churches often are in violation of the law (e.g. a 2002 finance law reform requires all organizations to have a large amount of cash in treasury to have someone on staff, a stringent requirement which most churches cannot meet), and may be wrongfully associated to cults--as a striking example, my request of renting a hall in a Catholic spiritual center for a Thanksgiving meal was temporarily thought of as a cult simply because we give thanks to God!
(You can read a 2006 in-depth analysis of the religious freedom in France by the US Department of State)
