c. 2004 Religion News Service
Jews May Erect Sukkahs on Condo Balconies, Court Rules
OTTAWA (RNS) Freedom of religion includes the right of Orthodox Jews to erect religious ceremonial huts on the balconies of their condominiums even if the structures violate ownership agreements, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled late last month.
In a 5-4 ruling, the high court said religious freedoms trump the co-ownership contracts four Montreal Jewish families had signed that prevented any alterations to their balconies.
The court overturned two lower court rulings that said the families did not have the right to erect sukkahs on their balconies during the fall holiday of Sukkot.
The high court agreed that the Jewish residents were right to decline a compromise _ the erection of a communal sukkah in the gardens of the condo complex.
The appellants had argued that the Bible compels them to dwell in small, enclosed temporary huts on their balconies each year during the eight-day festival of Sukkot.
They were opposed by a company that co-owns the buildings, Syndicat Northcrest, which obtained injunctions that permitted the demolition of the sukkahs. The company said the structures were an eyesore, a fire hazard and lowered property values.
The court rejected arguments that the four Jewish families violated their co-ownership agreements. “They had no choice but to sign the declaration of co-ownership if they wanted to reside at that complex,” said the ruling. “It would be both insensitive and morally repugnant to intimate that the appellants simply move elsewhere if they take issue with a clause restricting their right to freedom of religion.”
The dissenting judges said the appellants’ religion dictated only that they eat meals in the structures, and that the co-owners’ concern for their environment and their compromise offer were legitimate.
The court ruled, however, that the sukkahs cannot block doors or obstruct fire lanes, and must conform, as much as possible, to the general aesthetics of the property.
Convicted Pedophile May Resume Church Duties
OTTAWA (RNS) A convicted pedophile has been cleared by an Anglican bishop to resume his duties as an assistant organist and choir director at a local church.
Ottawa Bishop Peter Coffin ruled this month that John Gallienne may return to St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church despite a lifetime ban from church leadership positions.
Gallienne’s future at the church had been in question since May, when the Kingston Whig-Standard published a 5,000-word story on his role at St. John’s. The story pointed out that his work there violated a church ban imposed after he pleaded guilty in 1990 to sexually abusing 13 young boys while he was choirmaster and organist at St. George’s Anglican Cathedral in Kingston.
The lifetime ban, which barred Gallienne from holding a leadership position or being involved in a music program in any Kingston-area Anglican church, was imposed in 1994, when he was released after serving four years in prison.
The Ottawa Anglican diocese adopted the same ban after Gallienne and his wife relocated there.
On July 4, Pat Johnston, Coffin’s executive assistant, said the bishop has written a letter giving Gallienne permission for “limited musical leadership” at St. John’s.
There are a number of conditions attached to the permission, Johnston explained. “Mr. Gallienne may not work with any children or young people, and his involvement is restricted to St. John’s parish. The bishop continues to monitor the situation.”
Canadians Support Religious Symbols in Schools
TORONTO (RNS) Two out of three Canadians oppose a ban on religious garb in schools, according to a recent poll conducted for the Center for Research and Information on Canada.
The poll of 1,500 adult Canadians, conducted June 16-21, was taken in light of developments in France, where the government earlier this year implemented a ban on religious symbols in schools as a way to reaffirm the country’s secular identity.
A French government panel concluded that some garments, including Islamic scarves, Jewish yarmulkas and crosses, represent a “conspicuous” sign of spiritual affiliation that should not be allowed in classrooms.
In Canada, 32 percent supported and 63 percent opposed prohibiting students from wearing an Islamic veil or scarf in schools.
Support for a ban on all religious symbols was highest in Quebec, at 51 percent of respondents. But support for banning just Islamic headgear fell to 36 percent in Quebec.
Citizenship Commission Bans Free Bibles
TORONTO (RNS) The Canadian Bible Society’s half-century-long tradition of offering Bibles as gifts to new Canadian citizens came to an end recently when the Citizenship Commission called an abrupt halt to the practice.
The national commission is an administrative tribunal composed of judges who make decisions regarding citizenship applications.
In a letter dated May 7 and addressed to the Bible Society’s national director, Phyllis Nesbitt, senior citizenship judge Michel C. Simard and citizenship registrar Patricia Birkett said, “We will no longer permit Bibles, or any other holy book, to be displayed in our premises and distributed to citizenship applicants.”
The letter notes that Canada “is a multicultural nation where freedom of religion is guaranteed under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. … We find that allowing holy books to be made available at citizenship ceremonies detracts from this message and could be construed as a tacit endorsement of certain religions.”
The Canadian Bible Society has been distributing free Bibles to new Canadian citizens at swearing-in ceremonies almost since the first such ceremonies were held in 1947.
The Bible society responded with a letter asking that the practice be allowed to continue, but has received no reply to date.
Muslims Seek Explanation for Airport Incidents
MONTREAL (RNS) A Canadian Islamic advocacy group wants an explanation from the federal government for the treatment of several Muslim women at Montreal’s Trudeau Airport.
At least four Muslim women immigrating to Canada late last month were told they had to remove their hijabs to have a photograph taken for their permanent residency card, even though the cloth covered only their hair and ears, leaving faces plainly visible.
Canada’s Council on American-Islamic Relations said the head covering has never been an issue before.
“It appears that the rules have been re-interpreted or new rules issued,” said CAIR-CAN executive director Riad Saloojee. “So people are now being asked to take it off entirely or partially.”
Saloojee said that since the case was made public, at least three other similar cases have surfaced, all at Trudeau Airport. Immigration Canada says hijabs don’t have to be removed and the department will look into the allegation.
Saloojee said he is still waiting for an explanation from federal officials.
Anglicans Collect Half of Settlement to Natives
TORONTO (RNS) The Anglican Church of Canada’s Indian Residential Schools Settlement Fund, formed last year to pay abuse claims stemming from boarding schools for native children, collected $11.6 million as of June 30 _ close to half its $25 million target.
According to the financial office of the Anglican Church of Canada’s General Synod, $3.1 million has been paid out in settlement claims.
In March 2003, the church reached an agreement with the federal government that limited the church’s liability to $25 million in lawsuits concerning the schools. The accord averted bankruptcy for the national church and several dioceses, although the diocese of Cariboo in central British Columbia in 2001 closed its diocesan office under financial pressure from lawsuits concerning the schools.
The fund is paying 30 percent of settlements (with the federal government paying 70 percent) to plaintiffs proving sexual or physical abuse in Anglican-run schools. Of the 80 native residential schools that operated for more than a century into the 1970s, the Anglican church operated 26.
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