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But before getting into that, for the
record, you should know that I'm a homegrown staunch constitutionalist.
As such, I see no problem in the interpretation of the First Amendment's
position on the separation of church and state. It's quite clear when
viewed without bias and with pure objectivity. Simply put, our
government is forbidden, by law, to establish a national religion and
religious practice, or to endorse, encourage, or prohibit any specific
religion or religious practice. Nor will the government interfere with
the (lawful) practice of any religion. Whether one, or several
individuals, elect to pray or otherwise express recognition of their
deity, even on public (government) property, as long as their conduct is
consistent with the accepted lawful practice of any other individual, or
group, that is their unalienable right.
Essentially, whether they've
strangers, or have gathered in fellowship for any other lawful purpose,
their spirituality, regardless of how objectionable others may find it,
doesn't even enter into the equation concerning a conflict of church and
state. That's what Freedom in our United States of America is all
about, folks and tolerance is its handmaiden. God bless America!
Now, with that being said, let's take a closer look at Mr.
Boulay's argument favoring a religious group's use of one of the
function rooms in the Norfolk Public Library as a meeting place.
Regardless of how a gathering identifies itself, if the members are
residents of Norfolk, they're entitled to the same use and privileges of
the library as any other resident, but nothing more and nothing less.
On the other hand, if the Providence Baptist Church is comprised of an
out-of-town membership, they should be denied the free use of space in
the library. While one can entertain the thoughts of charging this
group a fee, which could be tantamount to renting space in a public
building, that opens another very complex area for separate
consideration. For the same reason, limiting the length of time or
frequency a space can be occupied by the same party, for no other reason
but to arbitrarily set a limit, can be a sticky wicket and should be
carefully considered before any firm conclusions are drawn.
Assuming that the "church people" meet the qualifications as Norfolk
residents, there still should be no special treatment given. For
example, if this private group is storing its property, that creates a
precedent--and, also, a liability to the town; the library opens at
1:00PM on Sunday, yet the church people meet in the morning--are there
library personnel in attendance that early? If the library trustees
are granting any special privileges to any particular group that they
would or have denied to another they're wrong, and remedial steps should
be taken, immediately. I hasten to add that I'm not aware of any
evidence to confirm that allegation.
The reference made to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision
about the Good News Club vs. Milford Central School may not be as
applicable in context with the current question of the use of the
Norfolk Public Library as some might believe. I was vaguely aware of
the decision when it was first handed down, but just finished reading
it more thoroughly. First of all, some of the Court's decision was in
keeping with the existing laws of the State of New York. Commonwealth
of Massachusetts laws regarding the same issues may, or may not, be in
exact agreement with those of New York State; that point would need
further study. A more pertinent question arises when Mr. Boulay
compares the Norfolk Public Library to the Milford Central School; Mr.
Boulay's library is the property of the taxpayers in the Town of
Norfolk, while the Milford Central School is a district, or regional,
facility serving several other towns, besides Milford, New York.
Because it is a regional public facility, the combined taxes from all
the towns it services contribute to its operation; the Good News Club
resided within that more encompassing district. One might attempt to
argue that the ABLE or SAIL system also places our library building, the
actual structure, in a regional category, but I think that it's a weak
argument. So, we're back to asking, "Does the Providence Baptist Church
congregation meet the criterion of residing within the Town of Norfolk?"
Since all this is just food for thought; anyone have any
other ideas?
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