Sunday, January 24, 2010
What becomes of a “house of God” after God has left? –A Burgeoning Church-State Debate
Disputes over church property within the United States judicial system date back to the 19th century with Watson v. Jones (1871). Traditionally, these disputes have transpired between members of one denomination or another. However, recent disputes over church properties in Ohio and Massachusetts are set to spark a new conversation in the debate over church-state separation.
A recent article posted by the Religious News Service (here) describes the legal battle between the Catholic Church and the cities of Cleveland, OH and Springfield, MA over the designation of shuttered (closed) churches as historic landmarks. While instances of churches and congregations seeking landmark status for church properties are a fairly common occurrence (for example see: West Park Presbyterian Church in NYC), the disputes in Cleveland and Springfield are unique because, in these cases, the local Catholic dioceses are seeking to block the landmark status on the grounds of the first amendment, claiming if the Catholic Church is not permitted to choose in what ways the shuttered churches will be used in the future, then their rights to free exercise will be violated.
These cases evoke many interesting legal questions concerning the role government can play in religious matters. If a church building is no longer used for religious practices, does it remain a religious structure? And, if so, does the maintenance of such a building by a city government violate the establishment clause? The answers to these questions could have a major impact not only for the cases in Cleveland and Springfield, but also for cases like the West Park Presbyterian Church in New York.
Does the city government’s intent of “preserving the historic character of neighborhoods” outweigh the Church’s right to control church property? Tied to this question is the notion that churches, particularly old churches, while being privately owned, are at the same time public buildings because of their aesthetic and architectural value, as well as, the notion that a community has a right to preserve the appearance of its neighborhood. It is questionable whether either of these notions can be legally substantiated.
A final question which directly concerns the 1st amendment is whether the freedom of Catholics to practice their religion is affected if the diocese is not able to control church property. Clearly the diocese’s power is limited by the landmark designation. The diocese loses the ability to dictate the sale and use of the building, but it is unclear if that places a direct burden of the free exercise of the individual Catholic person’s religion. Since the buildings are no longer used for religious service, it seems that loss of control over the buildings would be inconsequential for religious practice.
Whatever answers the court finds for these and similar questions raised by these cases, one can be sure that they will shape future cases involving church property. Furthermore, they will have significant impact on American understanding of church-state separation and the interpretation of the religion clauses.
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