Judge rules churches can rent public school space (New York)

[Ian David]

Judge rules churches can rent public school space
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November 18, 2005, 3:27 AM EST

NEW YORK (AP) _ The city must let religious groups rent spaces in public schools for meetings, a federal judge has ruled.

The decision, from Judge Loretta Preska of the Federal District Court in Manhattan, makes permanent a preliminary order issued in mid-2002.

It is in response to a years-long push by the Bronx Household of Faith, an evangelical Christian church that has wanted to hold Sunday meetings in a public school.

Lisa Grumet of the city's law department said the city will appeal the case.

"We are concerned about having any schools in this diverse city become identified with any particular religious belief or practice," she said in a statement reported by The New York Times.

The new ruling, handed down late Wednesday, is in line with a 2001 Supreme Court decision that allows religious groups to meet on school premises.

More:
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--churchschoolspace1118nov18,0,1071796,print.story?coll=ny-region-apnewyork



Commentary from Alliance Defense Fund below:

FROM: Alan Sears, President

<snip>

Yesterday, that decade of perseverance netted a permanent injunction against the Board of Education of the City of New York City, barring them from refusing to rent space at a public school to the church for Sunday morning worship services.

This KEY victory — after years of ups and downs, disappointments, and moments of joy -- demonstrates once again the importance of perseverance and never giving up, even when things look lost. Many thought this case was over when the U.S. Supreme Court denied review back in 1998. Then, in 2001, the Lord gave us the Good News Club v. Milford Central Schools victory, in which Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, in the majority opinion, noted that in light of the Good News decision, the Bronx Household of Faith case may have been wrongly decided. Like Lazarus, the Bronx Household of Faith case was given new life resulting in a preliminary win that we celebrated in 2002!

In her decision, Federal Judge Loretta Preska rejected the school board’s claim that the church’s use of a public school facility for Sunday worship services violated the Establishment Clause. She noted that the fact that the board’s discriminatory policy against the church “does not amount to unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination is astonishing in light of the Supreme Court’s clear holding in Good News Club.”

As big as many prior wins have been, to many this victory is even more important, as it opens up 1,200 public school buildings for churches and Christian groups. Jordan says: “This is the biggest victory in two decades for churches that simply want the same access to public facilities that other organizations have.”

Link to hate-site deliberately left out.

FYI: Alliance Defense Fund is the group that thinks suing colleges to keep them from providing health insurance to same-sex couples is "protecting the family."