Religious retribution for political views endangers religious freedom

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or the free exercise thereof …”

It is not just by chance that these profound words were chosen to be the very first words of the 1st Amendment to the Bill of Rights. The first colonists to escape to the New World were motivated by a desire to escape the rigid and mandated religious practices and domination of the Church of England.

The Protestant Reformation in the 16th Century replaced rigid Catholic Church domination of the political and religious life in Europe in areas where the reform movement took hold, but catholicism and papal supremacy remained prevalent in most of Europe.

Napoleon’s conquests in Europe in the 20 years following the French Revolution, and most significantly after the American Revolution and the adoption of the U.S. Constitution with its Bill of Rights, changed the political and religious landscape in Europe.

At a ceremony at the Vatican, where the pope was to formally recognize him as emperor of the French Empire, Napoleon seized the crown from the hands of the pope and crowned himself emperor of the so-called French Empire. This symbolic act of self-crowning and imposing his Napoleon Code of Law on the conquered territories as the supreme law of the conquered lands reduced forever the influence of the Catholic Church and the pope’s political authority over the masses of Europe.

The U.S. Supreme Court has interpreted the quoted text noted above, as creating a “wall of separation between religion and government.” Unfortunately, that wall has experienced significant cracks.

The latest attempt to breach this wall of separation came about when, several months ago, the head of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops raised the issue of withholding communion from the Catholic faithful who support public policy issues at variance with Catholic orthodox dogma.

Although cast in strictly religious terms and criteria, its clear purpose and intention would be to intimidate church-going Catholic elected officials to change their stance and to pressure them to change their vote on a public policy issue to comply with the current teachings of the Catholic Church, namely abortion rights. President Biden was the apparent intended target.

It is the right of every American citizen to incorporate his or her religious beliefs into that person’s individual behavior and opinion on public issues; and to embrace those beliefs when casting his or her secret ballot on an issue. However, one person’s private religious sin should never become another person’s public crime.

It is also the right of every American and religion-based organization to try to lawfully persuade other Americans to support a particular public issue by employing debate, peaceful demonstration and education with regard to the merits of any issue. Sin is not a valid basis for passing laws in America. The default position on any issue should be freedom.

Religious intimidation is not an acceptable or legal method of persuasion in a free society. It is a violation of the very basic values embodied and ordained in the U.S. Constitution.

Thankfully, the USCCB, after much discussion and division over the past few months rejected the concept of withholding the religious sacrament of communion from elected officials as too controversial, divisive and, for the moment, not in the best interest of the American Catholic Church.

The political engagement of religion using coercive religious methods of persuasion is a slippery slope that could become a serious danger to the health of our democratic society and to each of our three branches of government.

It would be wise for all Americans of whatever level of religious faith they observe to guard against religious coercion or intimidation entering into the public discourse of our democratic and political processes.

If you wish to comment or respond you can reach me at melpearlman322@gmail.com. Please do so in a rational, thoughtful, respectful and civil manner.

Mel Pearlman holds B.S. & M.S. degrees in physics as well as a J.D. degree and initially came to Florida in 1966 to work on the Gemini and Apollo space programs. He has practiced law in Central Florida since 1972. He has served as president of the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando; was a charter board member, first vice president and pro-bono legal counsel of the Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center of Central Florida, as well as holding many other community leadership positions.