Not being "allowed" to hold a Bible Study in a public bldg. is stepping on what Constitutional Law here?

Of course this is a 1st Amendment issue. However I fail to see how allowing a Bible study in a public building can be construed as Congress passing a law respecting the establishment of a religion. The U.S. Supreme Court, not Congress, has enacted all laws barring this. However, it possibly could be argued that the "prohibiting the free exercise thereof" clause in the 1st Amendment may come into play here.

Not being "allowed" to hold a Bible Study in a public bldg. is stepping on what Constitutional Law here?
If the public building is otherwise open for other civic groups, you CANNOT be prohibited from having Bible study there. Such a regulation violates the Free Speech, Free Assembly, and Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.





Now, if (a) this is a school and the teacher is leading the Bible study, this MAY be prohibited in certain circumstances, and (b) if the public building does not normally allow people to have gatherings there, you don't have to be accommodated.


http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/rel_...
Reply:What if they wanted to study the Koran? Would you still be upset? The safe bet is to keep religion out of politics and politics out of religion.
Reply:Your right to the free practice of your religion is what is being violated.





Allowing religious groups to use otherwise unused public space THAT THEIR TAXES PAID FOR does not, in the mind of any rational or reasonable person, constitute establishment of a religion, by any stretch of the imagination.





If any other kind of group is allowed to meet there, then there is no reason religious groups should be prevented from meeting there.





Regardless of the ACLU and liberal judges trampling upon peoples' freedom to practice religion, the fact remains that allowing religious groups the same access to public buildings as non-religious groups is not violating any aspect of the Constitution. Period.





I have spoken.
Reply:If a public building allows religious meetings for one religion, then they would have to allow all of them. They'd have Islamic meetings, Wiccan meetings, Santoria meetings and so on. If they didn't do so, they could be accused of promoting a specific religion, which is against the law. Do you want the buildings you pay for through your taxes to be used to promote satanism, witchcraft, or animal sacrifice? If the answer is no, then you can't have Bible study in those buildings either.
Reply:You can Assymble anywhere You wish and Read Your Bible anytime, any place That includes the WORKPLACE!


The First Amendment


The Separation of Church and State is a quote From Thomas Jefferson the Buddhist, MEANING THE GOVERNMENT CANNOT INTERFERE OR MAKE LAWS TELLING CHURCHES WHAT TO TEACH,PREACH, or CHANGE THEIR DOCTRINAL BELIEFS! They CANNOT MAKE LAWS TO ARREST PEOPLE BASED ON THEIR Religious BELIEFS! There is NO GOVERNMENT MANDATED RELIGION EITHER. YOU ARE FREE NOT TO HAVE A RELIGION OR NOT PARTICIPATE IN ONE....Individuals and GROUPS Have the right to REDRESS government with their Religoius BELIEFS!





Get those Commies and Deport them to Mother Russia or Cuba where they will be Happier or give them to Hugo Chavez so he can bore them to death with his Nightly Bedtime stories of how wonderful he is as their god! And BELIEVE In Nothing, except wht the STATE tells them!
Reply:most misinterpreted amendment ever. It was meant to stop the government from establishing a state religion, to keep it from banning religions. If any other group is allowed to use the room, keeping a religious group from using it as well is a violation
Reply:I don't see a big deal in holding a bible study class in a public building. It is really not establishing a religion by the gov. I presume they're paying rent to use the facility. There are several "churchs" (catholic and otherwise) that started holding services in a public grade or high-school until their church was built. One cannot reasonably argue that the public/gov is establishing a religion in that case. Now, like in texas, if they want to have public school classes on bible study- I have an issue with that.
Reply:Freedom of association: 1st Amendment.
Reply:should have paid attention in high school government class sweetie...
Reply:There is a thing called SEPERATION of Church and State in our land.....
Reply:May I refer you to the 1st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution?





"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof"
Reply:People, I realize some of you are very passionate about what you believe in, but can you please THINK before you post? Please?





You should be able to practice your religion anywhere you want? Anywhere? Really? Stop for a minute and reflect on how ludicrous this statement is. You sure can't practice your religion in my house. You can't hold a Bible study in the middle of an Interstate highway. You can't hold it in the White House (and I mean, you, you personally). You can't hold it in a synagogue.





Let's get the three ground rules straight here: (1) There is no general Consitutional right to do whatever you want anywhere you want anytime you want to do it. Trust me, there isn't. (2) Even if you do have a Constitutional right to do something, that still does not entail the right to do it anywhere you want, anytime you want, and in any manner you want. Trust me, it doesn't. (3) It is the job of the courts -- not the public, and certainly not the church -- to interpret the Constitution. That too is in the Constitution.





Time and again, the courts have interpreted the First Amendment to mean that the government is prohibited from establishing a state religion. Proclaiming a religion as such isn't the only way to "establish" it. Publicly endorsing one religion over others, and providing it with preferential access to government facilities and services are also tantamount to establishing it as a "state religion". Accordingly, the government has a dilemma: it must either accommodate all religions equally, or accommodate no one. So, back to what the EDUCATED posters here said: if you want to hold your Bible study in the public building, you have to live with the fact that Muslims, Jews, Wiccans, Santorians, Animists, and Voodoo practitioners will also hold their religious activities in that same building. Don't like it? Then rent a private space to practice your religion, like everyone else.





Let me restate once again: It is the specific job of the courts to interpret the Constitution. It is neither illegal nor otherwise wrong for the Supreme Court to interpret the Constitution; it is the courts' job. And, contrary to what the subsequent poster said, the Supreme Court has not enacted any laws establishing any religion as the national religion.





Added: Of course, Congress would not be making a decision here as to who should be allowed to worship in a public building. But Congress does make laws that require people to fund public buildings. Therefore, granting preferential access to those buildings to members of one sect would in fact require everyone -- by act of Congress -- to contribute to that sect financially. If a church tax isn't an "establishment of religion", I don't know what is.
Reply:"Amendment I





Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."





Amendment I of the Bill of Rights to the Constitution.
Reply:None. there is NO separation of church and state other than a reference by (I think) Thomas Jefferson in a letter, where he stated that the STATE shall not interfere with the business of the church, NOT vise versa, as the liberals are making it out to be.





No where in the constitution will you find a separation of church and state. It is a conceived notion that has snowballed over the years.





I am not saying that the church should run the government by any means, but the government is trying to run the church by mandating what they can preach, whom they HAVE to marry or allow in positions of authority within the church, ect.





So far they have failed, but they keep trying from time to time.





It's all showing how close we are to the rapture and the begining of the end.





You do need to respect the wishes of those in charge of the building, but if it's a public building for public use, you are within your rights to have a bible study as long as they are allowing other organizations to use it.
Reply:It depends on the "public building" your in. If it's a privately owned building, then the owner may have the right to evict anyone they wish, especially if you are pushing a message contrary to their beliefs.


If you are in a state, local, or federal building and simply holding a bible while conducting business there, no problem. If you are loitering, or somehow drawing attention to yourself for the purposes of pushing a religious message this may violate may other laws and privelages beyond freedom of speech and expression.


Also, if a school allows a bible study to occur, then they must also allow scientologists, mormons, jehovas witnesses, and neo nazis to participate under the veil of expression. They often ban that activity to protect themselves from other forms of intolerance and distraction.


The best thing to do is to ask the administrator of the property, if they say no, there is little you can do.
Reply:Non of your constituional rights are being "stepped on" The constituion grants citizens certain rights, however, holding a bible study in a public building is construed as a vioaltion of church and state.