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Independent News — Great Britain, 2003-02-28
...
The convention [to draft Europe's new constitution] is comprised of 105 politicians drawn from 28 member states and
applicant countries. They are trying to draw up a constitution to clarify the powers of an expanded EU and prevent
its decision-making machinery from seizing up. Members of the convention have tabled 1087 amendments to drafts of
the first 16 articles—many demanding a reference to God or religion. The objections are threatening to swamp
M. Giscard's work and delay the outcome beyond the summer deadline.
...
But Linda McAvan, a British Labour MEP, argued that a specific reference to Christianity "would offend those many
millions of people of different faiths or no faith at all". She was backed by Louis Michel, the Belgian Foreign
Minister,who said the EU should be inclusive. "Europe is not mono-religious," he said.
...
Although the Vatican, the Greek Orthodox Church and Protestant Churches have lobbied for a reference they are more
concerned to enshrine protection for their religion-based charitable organisations.
Webmaster's comment:
This is more than just a war of words. Money, power and political influence are at stake,
as evidenced by the churches' desire to preserve the special privileges which they enjoy.
London Times — United Kingdom, 2003-02-14
Nearly one in three people in the city ticked the "no religion" box on the 2001 census form, giving
Norwich the highest proportion of non-believers in the country—and almost twice the national average.
...
Norwich has for centuries been renowned as a centre of religious belief. The former home of the 14th-century
mystic Julian of Norwich, the Anglican diocese of Norwich boasts the highest concentration of medieval churches in Europe.
Yet the census figure published yesterday shows that the city has proportionately fewer Christians than almost anywhere
else in the country. While seven out of ten people in England and Wales ticked the "Christian" box to describe
their religion, only six out of ten from Norwich did so—with only a handful of places, including Bradford, Birmingham
and Luton, recording fewer. Nearly one in ten people did not state a religion at all.
...
Even the National Secular Society was surprised. "I’m astonished," said a spokesman. "Norwich has a long
religious history. It is mystifying that there should be more atheists in that part of the world than anywhere else. We have
only 15 members in Norwich."
See also:
Rocky Mountain News — Denver, Colorado, USA, 2003-02-07
Donated plaques with the motto "In God We Trust" would be posted in all state buildings and public schools
under a bill passed by a House committee Thursday. After 16 witnesses and 2 ½ hours of debate over mixing God and
government, Republicans on the State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee approved the bill on an 8-4 party-line vote.
Opponents raised alarms about removing the wall between church and state, while supporters said America has a long
history of blending faith and freedom.
The measure's sponsor, Rep. Debbie Stafford, an Aurora Republican, choked back tears when she told of a serviceman headed
to Kuwait who asked her for a flag. She also talked about her stomach "turning" when she received an e-mail
from an "unpatriotic" local high school teacher who said he wouldn't post the plaque in his classroom.
Stafford softened the bill by saying plaques could be donated, knowing that the state's tight budget would doom any
spending measures. But administrators would still have to hang the plaques or risk being sued.
Attorney Robert Corey of the Alliance Defense Fund, a Christian legal group, volunteered to represent the state or
any district in a lawsuit.
...
Opponents warned that such a bill is the first step to becoming a theocracy. Forcing the placement of a religious
statement in public buildings is akin to fundamentalists in other countries requiring strict adherence to a religious
code, they said.
See also:
Webmaster's comment:
Another egregious violation of church-state separation, in a nation which was constituted as secular,
but where politics remain mired in religious bombast. To make matters worse, Christianity is being used as ideological
support for American warmongering.
BBC News, 2003-02-06
Officials in Brussels have omitted the word God from the European Union's future constitution.
The president of the convention on the future of Europe, Valery Giscard d'Estaing, unveiled the constitution's
first 15 draft articles on Thursday. Among them are statements of respect for member countries' national identity
and for human rights, as well as commitments to social justice and the environment.
But none of the chapters mentions any deity, or any explicitly religious or Christian values supposed to underpin
the European project. Some countries—particularly Poland, a future EU member—had argued for such a
mention. The Vatican and smaller denominations, including Jewish, Muslim and Protestant organisations, have also
advocated its inclusion.
But others—including France, a strictly secular state—have strongly opposed it.
...
Correspondents say the issue could still re-surface in a preamble to the document, which is expected to be completed by the summer.
See also:
Webmaster's comment:
Mention of hypothetical supernatural entities has no place in the constitution of any nation or union of
nations.
Gay.com UK, 2003-02-03
The Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association (GALHA) has called on the EU to resist pressure from religious organisations to have
an exhortation to God and an acknowledgement of Europe’s "religious heritage" included in the new constitution.
An EU committee is currently formulating a new constitution that will cover the soon-to-be-expanded Union. The committee is
under pressure from religious organisation—particularly the Vatican—to include in the first article of
the new constitution an acknowledgement that "God" is central to Europe and that the Union owes its
success to its "religious heritage".
In a letter to the committee, George Broadhead, the secretry of GALHA says: "As far as homosexuals are concerned, the
'heritage' of religion in Europe throughout the centuries has been one of persecution. The continued waning in
observance of religion in Europe has resulted in increased secularisation of morality and public life. This has been achieved
by the will of the people through democratic means, and it is likely to continue for the foreseeable future."
"Naturally, religious interests regret this loss of their power and are anxious to regain it, but they should not be
allowed to do this at the expense of peace and unity in a diverse Europe. Religious references will inevitably lead to division
and disagreement, and so, in the interests of all citizens, the references to God and religion should be rejected".
Mr Broadhead added: "It is essential that the EU remains secular. Within a couple of years many other Catholic countries
will gain membership, and this will strengthen the hand of the Vatican, with its grotesquely anti-gay agenda".
See also:
Webmaster's comment:
Bravo! It is of the utmost importance that all Europeans, gay and otherwise, refuse to allow the Vatican (or any
other religious institution) to promote its own narrow interests at the expense of Europeans by imposing its retrograde doctrines
on the EU constitution. Separation of church and state must be preserved where it exists and extended where it does not.
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