![]() This came about because one of Jehovah’s Witnesses was arrested while attempting to offer The Watchtower and Awake! magazines to his neighbors 8. For example, in the United States, it is well settled that the First Amendment of the Constitution protects an individual’s freedom of religious expression. On a case-by-case basis, litigation involving individuals with strong religious motivation defined the rights now considered to be guaranteed by freedom of religion. The City of Quebec, (1953) SCR 299 This case defined free exercise of religio (.)ģFreedom of religious expression has not always been as well defined as it is today 7. 10 West Virginia State Board of Education v.Richardson, Freedom of Religion and the ‘Cult’ Controversy, 4 Christian Research Ass. These strategies protect neither the children’s best interests nor the constitutional rights of children or parents. Other trial judges seek to avoid the appearance of partiality by applying the antiquated common law rule that the custodial parent has exclusive decision-making authority on issues concerning the children’s religious experience. ![]() Some custody evaluators and trial judges feel that they can no longer take a neutral or impartial position on questions of religious training when religious training is at the heart of the dispute. Despite the lip service paid to tolerance and mutual respect, the plain truth is that many new and minority religions with their own holidays or religious practices may be considered as different or non-traditional, and are therefore, presumed to be harmful to children. Thus, a discussion of religious freedom and the best interests of children focuses the attention on children whose parents are adherents of minority religions or new religious movements. In addition to the accepted mainstream faiths, there is a surge in new religious movements 6 many of which are non-Christian.ĢIf one accepts the adage that the advancement of a civilization can best be measured in terms of its treatment of women and children, one can conclude that by extension, the best way to evaluate religious freedom is by a consideration of the freedoms extended to minority religions. In the United States alone, some estimates indicate that as many as 1,200 different religions are practiced 5. Another factor that complicates the issue is the increased diversity of religious persuasions now active. A soaring divorce rate coupled with an increase in inter-religious and inter-cultural marriages 3, as well as an increased readiness to change one’s religion 4 have contributed to a growing body of law defining the rights of parents and children involved in custody disputes where religious training is a central issue. 6 The author has selected the expression “new religious movements” rather than the more pejorative t (.)ġSince legal historian, Leo Pfeffer penned those words much has changed.5 The New Encyclopædia Britannica Vol.4 Religion in America (1992-1993) published by The Princeton Research Center, notes an upward swing (.).Reuben, Raising Jewish Children in a Contemporary World 111.
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