... Perhaps more than any other ground in human rights codes, creed rights tend to give rise to strong opinions, even among those who may not otherwise have much to say about human rights. Everything from what is creed (and what beliefs and practices are protected under the ground of creed), how creed claims are proven, how creed must be accommodated and what to do where creed bumps up against other rights have led to judicial interpretation and public debate. In Quebec, the provincial government appointed a Commission on Accommodation Practices Related to Cultural Differences 1 in response to public discontent concerning accommodation of, among other things, creed rights. This may be in part because creed is unique in some respects. It encompasses not just innate personal characteristics but also covers associated practices and beliefs. Rights in relation to religion have been recognized as not just equality rights, but also among the “fundamental freedoms” of every Canadian as listed in s. 2 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. 2 As well, as will be seen in the discussion of the human rights decisions in this paper, creed more than any other right is impacted by international events, as issues from around the world can lead to religious intolerance and discrimination in Canada. A growing trend towards secularization may mean that there is less tolerance for religious practices generally,...
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...in a school setting? Every time the fires of the argument is rekindled, it ends in a stalemate, and is a topic that campaigning politicians tend to err away from. My aim is to stand stalwartly in favor of personal prayer being allowed for the individual and to point out where my beliefs stem from. Prayer should be allowed in schools because it is constitutional, acknowledges our religious heritage, and instills moral values. “The history of prayer in public school is a story of legal interpretation. The relationship between religion and government in the United States is governed by the First Amendment to the Constitution, which both...
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...Deputy Chairman, International Affairs Bureau of ABIM Introduction Freedom of religion is frequently misunderstood by many and this includes the issue on apostasy. The misunderstanding of public and even Muslims community on the concept and legal position of apostasy has negated the image of Islam as a religion of peace. This is not surprising as there are numerous negative allegations upon the religion of Islam such as condemning it as barbaric and incompatible with modernity and human rights. This serious misconception should be rectified and in fact, it is a religious duty for every Muslim to portray a true picture of Islam and to response on any allegation and negative arguments upon this issue. In view of this negative phenomenon, this article aims to refine the misconception of apostasy in Islam and attempts to response the previous two articles published by the New Mandala entitled ‘An Exploration of the Concept of Apostasy in Islam’ by Joshua Woo Sze Zeng and ‘Malaysian Muslims Responses to Conversion’ by Norani Bakar whereby the former heavily relies on the essay written by Abdullah Saeed entitled ‘Freedom of Religion, Apostasy, and Islam’ and the online resources and the latter highlights the Malaysian Muslims response to apostasy with reference to HIMPUN initiative by several non-governmental organizations. Before presenting my arguments on the issue of apostasy in Islam, it is important to note that ABIM was not involved with the HIMPUN initiative. It is worth to...
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...the present-day notion is. The Founders’ notion of the separation of church and state was not to erase religion from public life but that the church would not determine governing laws and the laws would also not determine church doctrine: the Founders encouraged religion, as they believed religion was an essential and vital part of the new nation (Spalding, p. 312, 2008). The Founders acknowledged the importance of religion in our country. Even when they thought their homes were being barraged and overrun, they took the time to start their important meeting with a prayer, and as John Adams put it in his letter to Abigail, he had never seen a “greater effect upon an audience” (Novak, p. 306, 2008). Novak further notes that The Founders formed a covenant with God, pledging their fidelity to Him, and asking Him to protect their liberty, and solidifying this covenant by asking Americans to set aside a day for prayer and fasting (Novak, pp. 306-307, 2008). The Founders saw religion as guidance to morality. They also believed in God’s providence and saw Him as the author of liberty. Dreisbach notes that today, the “separation of church and state” or the “wall of separation” is frequently used to separate religion from private life and thus encourage a private religion and a strictly secular state, and a philosophy “intolerant of religious influences in the public square” (p. 320, 2008). This notion is altered from that of the Founders. Spalding states that what the separation of...
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...AN EXAMINATION OF FREEDOM OF RELIGION PROVISIONS IN PUBLIC BODIES IN NEW ZEALAND, CANADA, AND THE UNITED STATES by ELIZABETH G. FOX 28 August 2009 1 I INTRODUCTION New Zealand does not have a state religion in the way that other countries do.1 The Church of England, for example, has its doctrine and prayer book ratified by Parliament and has the Queen as supreme authority over both ecclesiastical and civil matters.2 However, the central legislators of this country listen to the Speaker of the House open each Parliamentary session with the following prayer.3 Almighty God, humbly acknowledging our need for Thy guidance in all things, and laying aside all private and personal interests, we beseech Thee to grant that we may conduct the affairs of this House and of our country to the glory of Thy holy name, the maintenance of true religion and justice, the honour of the Queen, and the public welfare, peace, and tranquillity of New Zealand, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Is this appropriate in a country that professes no state church and the tolerance of all religions equally?4 Religious content has historically infiltrated governing and administrative bodies. However, with the cultural disestablishment of Christianity and the emergence of toleration for all faiths, there continues to be the presence and preference of a small set of religions by the State. The degree to which religion interacts with the State varies with different public bodies. One reaction...
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...______________________________ May 2014 Introduction In school, we students study the life and works of our national hero Jose P. Rizal. Our teachers taught us that the Calamba hero was born as the seventh of the children of Doña Teodora and Don Francisco. We can also remember how he pursued his studies until he was able to travel to different places and encountered different challenges. We can’t as well forget his two of his great works Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo. And the event on how he died in Luneta is still in our memories as we observe Rizal Day on December 30 yearly. We Filipinos are until today educated about Dr. Rizal. One can possibly wonder why we are studying our national hero as a subject itself. It is simply because Rizal Course is mandated by law under Republic Act 1425 or known as Rizal Law. Many may not be familiar with this law. This act was before Senate Bill No. 438 written and sponsored by former Senator Claro M. Recto and then written by former Senator Jose P. Laurel as R.A. 1425. On the 12th day of June 1956, the bill was enacted. Rizal law is made up of six sections that can be conceptualized in the law’s three major provisions. First, it directs educational agencies to include in the curricula of all schools, colleges and universities, public or private, the study of the life of our national hero, with emphasis on the original or unexpurgated versions of the Noli and El Fili. Second, it obliges all the libraries of all schools, colleges and universities to maintain...
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...Republican motherhood Raise virtuous, well-educated sons That is what is necessary in a republic E.g. Abigail Adams Question How successful were the Articles of Confederation as a constitution? Evidence Congress didn’t have the power to collect taxes or to regulate commerce Written notes… Constitution Written notes… Article II Presidential (executive branch) powers Commander in chief Enormous power that is used regularly Undeclared wars are now commonplace – the president orders military action (criticism of an imperial presidency – perhaps president should ask Congress regardless) Negotiate treaties Senate has to approve by 2/3 majority, however Veto Negotiated legislation President sets the budget and sets agenda Can be overridden by a 2/3 majority of Congress Andrew Johnson had numerous vetoes overridden (also Truman) Obama has vetoed the fewest bills since James Garfield Divided congress with great difficulty passing bills Primary reason: president is an integral part of the legislative process Appoint federal justices and government employees (e.g. heads of CIA and Federal Reserve) Enforce laws executive orders Order of the president without Congressional approval that has the force of law Only operates within the framework of an existing piece of legislation or constitutional power Order based on a certain interpretation Example: Harry Truman integrates the armed forces Ends segregation of blacks and whites in the army Issue pardons Electoral...
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...The “Hosanna-Tabor” Case in the US Supreme Court Introduction “Evangelical Lutheran Church and School Hosanna-Tabor v. Commission for Equal Employment Opportunities-CIOE” is a famous case decided in January 2012 by the United States Supreme Court. It addressed the right to religious freedom and the establishment clause, the "ministerial exception" and the limits of state intervention in the internal affairs of a church. Arguably, "Hosanna-Tabor" is the most important case on religious freedom to reach the Supreme Court in the last 20 years. A case in which the Supreme Court established a milestone in the understanding of cases involving labor relations and religions institutions. More specifically on the scope of the term "ministerial exception" as well as the "establishment clause and free exercise", brought by the First Amendment of the US Constitution. Analysis of the Decision The Supreme Court reviews, in this case, an argument between the interpretation of the constitutional provision in the Americans with Disabilities Act, which protects people with disabilities in hiring and against dismissal without cause. The issues raised are as follows: Can a disabled person to be fired from his or hers job, even if the employer is a religious organization? What is the limit and the scope of the "ministerial exception" and the "free exercise clause", especially when there is a conflict with other values? More specifically, what was discussed was whether...
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...progressive nature of secularization everywhere and 3) Secularity is the resultant state of society. The term "secularism" was first used by the British writer Holyoake in 1851 to describe his views of promoting a social order separate from religion. The English word ‘secular’ comes from the Latin ‘saeculum’, which means ‘an age’ or ‘the spirit of an age’ and has the same meaning as the Greek ‘aeon’. In general terms, secularism means “belonging to this age, or worldly” along with a denial of other worldly realities (i.e. religious). The Bible introduces the idea of divine creation in the book of Genesis. God speaks directly to Man in Genesis: “Be fertile and increase, fill the earth and master it”. As Peter Berger, a social theorist notes that in this the idea of a secular world is sown as a God who stands outside of the Cosmos which is his creation. This opens the way for self making activity which Berger calls ‘historization’. Caesar was the emperor of Rome. In a famous passage Jesus said, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's". Some have thought that Jesus' statement established two separate realms, Caesar's and God's, and that people should render to each what they ask for in their respective realms. Later, during the rule of Roman Emperor Constantine 1 the two worlds were sought to be brought together. Christianity became a dominant religion of the Roman...
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...may be found in the sacred text of the New Testament. Africa’s contribution to Black religion is well known and John Jackson is an advocate of this position. He has cited several legacies of Egypt to Christianity. Education was an experience that was required by each person in a tribe. The community to which one belonged defined what it meant to be human. To be human was to belong to a community and participate in beliefs, rituals, and ceremonies of that community. African Education was the oral instruction that emerged through their music, dance, folk tales, rituals, proverbs, poetry, and so on. These tools served as instruction. Slaves during the Antebellum Period formed new ideas and practices on their own that pronounced longing for freedom. These meetings were held in the brush harbors and praise houses, and were thus coined the “invisible church”. Story and song were the sources of education during this period of slavery. This oral communication was used as the education structure and was indispensable. 2. What role, if any, do the following items play in African American Christian Religious Education? The African American Pastor Hill makes the claim “The Black pastor as teacher is the most important leader in the educational ministry of the Black Church”. I agree, to a certain extent with Hill that the Black Pastor is the most important leader in the...
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...to students or just adults. The students argued that they should be allowed to wear armbands to display their praise for the people of the dead during the war. The staff thought this shouldn’t be allowed, mostly because of their influence of their actions might disrupt the learning environment of the class and (possibly) the school. This is understandable. They only wanted was best for the students. Although they are doing this for the best for the students, isn’t this a little restricting? Yeah sure, they don’t want the students to form a riot, but not allowing them to express their feelings from the war by not letting them wear arm bands, worse case not allowing them to return until they didn’t wear it? That’s the reason why the case was started in the first place. This could be avoided if they were allowed to wear the armbands in school…to a certain extent that is. Besides, this could be the exact reason why a riot might form, the restrictions is causing a stressful strain to the students and couldn’t take much more of it. In 1965, 3 students Mary Beth and John Tinkers and one other student in Des Moines, Iowa decided to wear black arm bands to school in representation of mourning the dead and protest the Vietnam War. The Vietnam War was a military conflict fought primarily in the Southern Vietnam in the year between 1959 and 1975, the Vietnam War cost the United States 58,000 lives, 350...
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...Chapter 1, Section 1 Notes * Government is the institution through which a society makes and enforces its public policies. * Public policies are all of those things a government decides to do that ranges from taxation, defense, education, crime, health care, transportation, environment, civil rights, and working conditions. * Legislative power is the power to make law and to frame public policies. * Executive power is the power to execute, enforce, and administer law. * Judicial power is the power to interpret laws, to determine their meaning, and to settle disputes that arise within the society. * Dictatorship is a form of government in which the leader has absolute power and authority. * Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme authority rests with people. * States can be defined as a body of people, living in a defined territory, organized politically, and with the power to make and enforce law without the consent of any higher authority. * States must have 4 things that are population, territory, sovereignty, and government. * There are 4 major political ideas. * The force theory is that many scholars believed that the state was born of force. * The evolution theory claims that the state developed naturally out of the early family. * The divine right theory states that it was widely accepted in much of the Western world from the fifteenth through the eighteenth century...
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...Prayer in Public Schools Derrick DuHart Race, Religion, Culture Arkansas Baptist College Dr. Johnson, Instructor November 4, 2014 Tables of Contents I. Introduction Background/Statement of Problems pg. 3-4 Purpose of the Study pg. 5-12 Research Questions pg. 13 Significance of the Study pg. 14-19 II. Literature Review Methodology and Sampling Design Strategy pg. 20 Data Collection Procedures pg. 20 Data Analyzed pg. 21 Ethical Issues pg. 21 III. Results Conclusion pg. 21-22 References pg. 23 Appendix: I. Annotated Bibliography pg. 24-26 II. Survey Questions pg. 27 III. Results (Charted/Tables) pg. 28-31 Notes: I. Introduction Background/Statement of Problem Prayer in Public Schools The courts have ruled against prayer in school. Many agree with the decision; yet many disagree. Prayer should be allowed in public schools because it is already practiced. It prevents...
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...the public. Lincoln’s comments that day, however, embraced only a brief moment in the cemetery’s dedication. Lincoln attempted to give meaning to the events at Gettysburg, indeed to the Civil War itself, by speaking about the principles for which he believed the Union stood. Lincoln states that our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the intention that all men are created equal. Then on another note goes into stating that we are now in a great Civil War which is testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived and so devoted, can long tolerate. He wants to make notice that we are not on a great battle-field of that war, because we have come to dedicate a portion of that field as not for war but more for a final resting place; a resting place for those who gave their lives that the nation might live. Lincoln wants people to realize that our fathers have said that we are all men created in equal, which means we should be as a whole. In 1776, the United States was a new country with a different kind of political philosophy. It was known as “The Great Experiment” because it ventured into new ground and no one knew if such a government could survive. Lincoln testes the idea whether the united States were founded on liberty and equality could survive. What was at stake was not merely lives, or money, or government control, but the actual foundations upon which the United States was founded upon. Making note to his...
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...Public Schooling VS Home Schooling COM/156 March 16, 2014 Pam Eshelman Now, more than ever, parents are exploring the options available to them concerning the education of their children. This decision, though a personal one for every parent, requires looking closely at the different benefits, as well as drawbacks of the options available to them. It goes without saying that both schooling options have their pros and cons, but many parents often question which one is better for their children. There is far more to consider than one might realize, so let us explore some of the lesser publicized aspects of the public versus home education dilemma. Home schooling can give a more direct and focused, although public school can have benefits in several ways like a child’s social development. First, let us look at some of the benefits of the home school. I was given an opportunity to interview my aunt Robyn Jeffords who home schooled all 5 of her children and the information below is all accredited to her. Home schooling can be good for a child in many ways. A homeschooled child often has access to a more direct one-on-one instructional setting, allowing for a very personalized learning environment. Within this setting, the parent can tailor every lesson to the specific learning style of the student, for optimum understanding of the material. It also means that the student can move as quickly or as slowly as needed. If the material is mastered...
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