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The Wall of Separation: Section 116, The First Amendment and Constitutional Religious Guarantees

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 January 2025

Joshua Puls
Joshua Puls*
Affiliation:
Newman College, The University of Melbourne
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Extract

The Commonwealth shall not make any law for establishing any religion, or for imposing any religious observance, or for prohibiting the free exercise of any religion, and no religious test shall be required as a qualification for any office or public trust under the Commonwealth.

Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof ...

[N]o religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.

Constitution of the United States of America

The Australian Constitution expressly guarantees very few individual rights. One of its rights-conferring provisions is s 116. Incongruously situated in the Chapter dealing with the States, s 116 prohibits the Commonwealth from, amongst other things, legislating against the free exercise of religion or for the establishment of any religion. The United States Constitution, by contrast, includes a comprehensive Bill of Rights which includes a similar, though not identical, religious guarantee. In very different contexts therefore both the High Court of Australia and the Supreme Court of the United States of America have adjudicated upon a similar constitutional provision.

Type
Research Article
Information
Federal Law Review , Volume 26 , Issue 1 , March 1998 , pp. 139 - 164
Copyright
Copyright © 1998 The Australian National University

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References

1 Section 116.

2 First Amendment and ArticleVI,cl 3,respectively.

3 There is debate about quite how many rights are expressly guaranteed by the Constitution and about the extent to which impliedrights reside in the Constitution.

4 Constitution,s 116.

5 McLeish, S, “Making Sense of Religion and the Constitution: A Fresh Start for Section 116”(1992) 18 MonULR 207 at 217Google Scholar.

6 Ibid.Note of course that colonial Australia would have been most concerned with the advancement of Christian religion.

7 Ibid.

8 J Quick and R Garran, The Annotated Constitution of the Australian Commonwealth (1901) at 951.See also S McLeish,above n 5 at 219-220.The original safeguard clause was to bind the States and the Commonwealth,hence the somewhat anomalous appearance of s 116,which binds only the Commonwealth,in the Constitution's Chapter on the States.

9 Official Record of the Debates of the Australasian Federal Convention (rep 1986), Vol V at 1732.

10 Ibid at 1769.

11 Ibid at 1773.

12 Pannam, C, “Travelling Section 116 with a U.S.Road Map”(1963)4 MULR 41 at 55Google Scholar,referring to Higgins.

13 United States Constitution,First Amendment.

14 Ibid,Art VI,cl 3.

15 Cantwell v Connecticut 310 US 296 (1940); Murdock v Pennsylvania 319 US 105 (1943).

16 Everson v Board of Education330 US 1 (1947);168 Am LR 1392 (1947) at 1400-1402.

17 Toohey, J, “A Government of Laws,and Not of Men?”(1993)4 PubLR 158 at 164-165Google Scholar.See also Mason, A,“The Role of a Constitutional Court in a Federation:A Comparison of the Australian and the United States Experience”(1986)16 F L Rev 1 at 8Google Scholar:“The founders [of the Australian federation] did not share the American framers'lack of faith in parliamentary supremacy and their belief that it was necessary to protect minority rights against majority oppression”.

18 (1912)15 CLR 366.

19 C Pannam,above n 12 at 68.

20 Adelaide Company of Jehovah's Witnesses Incorporated v The Commonwealth (1943) 67 CLR 116.

21 Ibid at 126.

22 Ibid at 123.

23 Ibid.

24 Ibid.

25 Ibid at 124.

26 Ibid at 123.

27 Ibid at 124.

28 Ibid at 132.

29 Ibid at 128.His Honour relied on American cases such as De Jonge v Oregon 299 US 353(1937), Stromberg v California 283 US 359 (1931), Schneider v State (Town of Irvington) 308 US147 (1939), Cantwell v Connecticut 310 US 296(1940).

30 Jehovah's Witnesses (1943)67 CLR 116 at 155 per Starke J.See also at 149 per Rich J,at 157 per McTieman J and at 160 per Williams J.

31 Attorney General for Victoria (ex rel Black) v The Commonwealth (1981)146 CLR 559;known as the DOGS case because it was brought by an organisation called Defence Of Government Schools.

32 Ibid at 579 and 598 per Gibbs J.

33 Ibid at 579.

34 Ibid at 582.

35 Ibid at 597.All members of the Court,with the exception of Murphy J,were in broad agreement with this understanding of “establishment”:at 606 per Stephen J,612 per Mason J,635 per Aickin J and 653 per Wilson J.

36 Ibid at 609.

37 Ibid at 610.

38 Ibid.

39 Ibid at615

40 Ibid at 623.

41 Ibid at 624.

42 Ely, R,“The View from the Statute:Statutory Establishments of Religion in England Ca 1300 to Ca 1900”(1986)8 UTasLR 225Google Scholar.

43 Church of the New Faith v Commissioner of Pay-Roll Tax(Vic) (1983)154 CLR.

44 Ibid at 130.

45 Ibid.

46 Ibid at 132.

47 Ibid at 136.

48 Ibid.

49 Ibid.

50 Ibid at 151.

51 “The Law and the Definition of Religion”in “Current Issues”(1984) 58 ALJ 366.

52 Scientology (1983)154 CLR 120 at 173-174.

53 See for example, R v Winneke; ex parte Gallagher (1982)152 CLR 211; Grace Bible Church v Reedman (1984) 36 SASR 376; Minister for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs v Lebanese Moslem Association (1987) 17 FCR 373; Thompson v Catholic College, Wodonga (1988) EOC ¶92-217; Burke v Tralaggan (1986) EOC ¶92-161; and Tarumi v Bankstown City Council (1987) EOC ¶92-214.

54 See F D Cumbrae-Stewart, “Section 116 of the Constitution”(1946)20 ALJ 207;H T Gibbs, “Section 116 of the Constitution and the Territories of the Commonwealth”(1947)20 ALJ 375;and C Pannam, “Section 116 and the Federal Territories”(1961)35 ALJ 209.See also DOGS (1981)146 CLR 559 at 593 and 649; Lamshed v Lake (1958)99 CLR 132 at 143; Teori Tau v The Commonwealth (1969)119 CLR 564 at 570.Cf R v Bernasconi (1915)19 CLR 629 and Spratt v Hermes (1965)114 CLR 226 at 250.

55 For a helpful although not exhaustive overview of American Supreme Court decisions on religious liberty see A Adams and C Emmerich, A Nation Dedicated to Religious Liberty: The Constitutional Heritage of the Religion Clauses (1990)at 122.

56 T Jefferson,“Reply to the Danbury Baptist Association,1802”in A Adams and C Emmerich,ibid at 112.

57 Rehnquist, W, “The True Meaning of the Establishment Clause: A Dissent” in R Goldwin and A Kaufman (eds), How Does the Constitution Protect Religious Freedom? (1987)at 99Google Scholar;chapter taken from Rehnquist J's dissenting judgment in Wallace v Jaffree 472 US 38 (1985).

58 58 98 US 145 (1879).

59 C Pannam,above n 12 at 64.

60 Reynolds 98 US 145 (1879) at 166-167.

61 168 Am LR 1392(1947).

62 Ibid at 1404.

63 Ibid at 1405.

64 380 us163 (1965).

65 398 us 333 (1970).

66 Section 6(j)

67 380 US 163 (1965) at 165.

68 Ibid at 166. For a comment on this statement by an English court see text at n 118 below.

69 Ibid at 184.

70 Ibid at 185.

71 Welsh 398 US 333(1970)at 340.

72 Ibid.

73 403 US 602 (1971).

74 Ibid at 612.This “excessive entanglement”involved “comprehensive,discriminating,and continuing state surveillance”:at 619.

75 Ibid at 614.

76 406 US 205 (1972).

77 Ibid at 211.

78 Ibid at 225.

79 Ibid at 215.

80 W Sadurski, “Neutrality of Law Towards Religion” (1990) 12 SydLR 420 at 446.

81 463 US 388(1983).

82 Ibid at 393.

83 Ibid at 394.

84 Ibid at 396.

85 Ibid at 397 and 399.

86 Ibid at 403.

87 465 US 668(1984).

88 Ibid at 673.

89 Ibid at 674.

90 Ibid at 679.

91 Ibid at 681.

92 Ibid at 681-2.The following have all been permissible as not infringing the prohibition against establishment:the supply of textbooks to children in religious schools: Board of Education v Allen 392 US 236(1968);reimbursement for transport expenditure to attend religious schools: Everson 168 Am LR 1392 (1947);federal grants for capital works at religious universities: Tilton v Richardson 403 US 672 (1971);noncategorical grants to religious colleges and universities: Roemer v Board of Public Works 426 US 736 (1976);and tax exemptions for church properties: Walz v Tax Commission 397 US 664 (1970).

93 Lynch 465 US 668(1984)at 684.

94 98 us145(1879).

95 There is a body of opinion which views the two prohibitions as merely aspects of the same concern,for example S Smith, Foreordained Failure (1995)at 36.

96 S McLeish,above n 5 at 208.

97 See above text at n 21.

98 See above n 5.

99 For example,Mason ACJ and Brennan J described religion as the “paradigm freedom of conscience”: Scientology (1983)154 CLR 120 at 130.The statement “Everyone has the right to freedom of thought,conscience and religion”appearsin Article 18 of the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights and in Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.For a discussion of this aspect,see “The Law and the Definition of Religion” above n 51 at 367.

100 S McLeish,above n 5 at 227.

101 C Pannam,above n 12 at 56-62.

102 Sadurski, W, “On Legal Definitions of 'Religion"'(1989)63 ALJ 834 at 838Google Scholar.

103 Virginia Declaration of Rights,Art 16 in A Adams and C Emmerich,above n 55 at 115.

104 W Sadurski,above n 102 at 835.

105 Freeman, G,“The Misconceived Search for the Constitutional Definition of 'Religion"'(1983)71 Georgetown LJ 1519Google Scholar.See also Weiss, J, “Privilege,Posture and Protection: 'Religion' in the Law” (1964) 73 Yale LJ 593 at 602-607CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

106 A Adams and C Emmerich,above n 55 at 91.

107 Jehovah's Witnesses (1943)67 CLR 116 at 123.

108 S McLeish,above n 5 at 224.

109 Ibid at 225.

110 Ibid at 225-226.

111 See above text at n 110.

112 W Sadurski,above n 80 at 444.

113 Ibid at 445.This author would disagree with him.

114 White J,in dissent in Welsh 398 US 333(1970)at 372,said “[i]t cannot be ignored that the First Amendment itself contains a religious classification”.

115 W Sadurski,above n 80 at 445.

116 Ibid.

117 [1980]3 All ER 918

118 Ibid at 924.

119 Ibid.

120 See for example,Latham CJ in Jehovah's Witnesses (1943)67 CLR 116 at 124;Lord Denning in R v Registrar General [1970] 3 All ER 886 at 890;Douglas Jin Seeger 380 US 163(1965)at 189;and a lengthy discussion of the question by Dillon Jin Barralet [1980]3 All ER 918 at 925 ff.See also F D Cumbrae-Stewart,above n 54 at 211: “Pure Buddhism is a philosophy not a religion”;and A Adams and C Emmerich,above n 55 at 90.

121 398 US 333(1970)at 341.

122 Above n 56 (emphasis added).

123 98 US 145 (1879).

124 Lane, P H,“Commonwealth Reimbursements for Fees at Non State Schools”(1964)38 ALJ 130 at 132Google Scholar. It is interesting to compare this article with the DOGS case because Lane considers the viability of the very type of scheme which was challengedin DOGS.

125 Aboven 59.

126 98 US 145(1879).

127 Yoder 406 US 205(1972)at 220.

128 Ibid at 215.

129 See, eg, Sherbert v Verner 374 US 398 (1963) at 407.See also Braunfeld v Brown 366 US 599 (1961); West Virginia State Board of Education v Barnette 319 US 624 (1943); People v Woody 394 P 2d 813(1964); Shapiro v Dorin 99 NWS 2d 830 (1950).

130 406 US 205(1972).

131 For a more general discussion of this area see Moens, G, “The Action-Belief Dichotomy and Freedom of Religion” (1989) 12 SydLR 195 at 203Google Scholar.

132 Jehovah's Witnesses (1943)67 CLR 116 at 131 per Latham CJ(emphasis added).

133 Before Cole v Whitfield (1988)165 CLR 360,s 92 was treated not unlike an individual right to trade.

134 Castlemaine Tooheys Ltd v South Australia (1990)169 CLR 436 at 473-4.See also F D Cumbrae-Stewart, above n 54,at 209;G Kennett, “Individual Rights,the High Court and the Constitution” (1994) 19 MULR 581 at 612;and Starke, J G, “Interpretation of Constitutionally Guaranteed Freedoms(as distinct from rights)”(1991)65 ALJ 440Google Scholar.

135 Australian Capital Television Pty Ltd v Commonwealth (1992)177 CLR 106.

136 Ibid at 157.A helpful review of this area can be found in Fitzgerald, B “Proportionality and Australian Constitutionalism”(1993)12 UTasLR 263Google Scholar.

137 See for example, the Supreme Court of Queensland in Mauger v Mauger (1966)10 FamLR 285,which denied a father custody of children on the basis that his religious practices would be “harmful to the children and harmful to the community” and “contrary to public policy”:at 286.See also Evers v Evers (1972)19 Fam LR 296.

138 C Pannam,above n 12 at 63.

139 F D Cumbrae-Stewart,above n 54 at 211.

140 This point was made by J Quick and R Garran(above n 8)in 1901,that “The Christian religion is,in most English speaking countries,recognized as a part of the common law… In America the courts of the Union and of the States find it necessary,in administering the common law,to take notice that the prevailing religion is Christian.”

141 PH Lane,above n 124 at 132.

142 (1981)146 CLR 559.

143 F D Cumbrae-Stewart,above n 54 at 207-208.

144 J Quick and R Garran,above n 8 at 951.

145 W Sadurski,above n 80 at 452.

146 Ibid.

147 C Pannam,above n 12 at 80.

148 Ibid at 81.

149 W Sadurski,above n 102 at 841.

150 Ibid.

151 For further criticism of proposals for two definitions,although not specifically directed at Sadurski's suggestion,see A Adams and C Emmerich,above n 55 at 91-92: “The view that religion should be more broadly construed for free exercise than for establishment purposes is of recent vintage,arising primarily because of problems generated by the Court's sweeping definition of the establishment clause in Everson and its progeny.”

152 A Adams and C Emmerich,above n 55 at 92.

153 W Sadurski,above n 80 at 423.

154 The Constitutional Alteration(Rights and Freedoms)Act 1988 (Cth) sought to apply s 116 equally to the States and Territories;to cover any government act, not just legislation;and to remove “for”,such that the government could not “establish any religion”or “prohibit the free exercise”thereof.

155 Although writers such as G Kennett,above n 134 at 584,take the view that there are four express rights,others identify six such as N O'Neill in “Constitutional Human Rights in Australia”(1987) 17 F L Rev 85 (adding freedom of movement between the states in section 92 and rights of electors of states in section 41) or P Bailey in “'Righting' the Constitution without a Bill of Rights”(1995)23 FL Rev 1 at 33 (adding s 92 ands 51(23A)).Bailey has previously suggested that there might be as many as twenty-four:see P Bailey, Human Rights: Australia in an International Context (1990)at 79,84-86 and chapter 4 generally.

156 F D Cumbrae-Stewart,above n 54 at 241.

157 Bropho v Western Australia (1990) 171 CLR 1; Mabo v Queensland [No 2] (1992)175 CLR 1;ACTV (1992)177 CLR 106; Nationwide News Pty Ltd v Wills (1992) 177 CLR 1; Chu Khen Lim and Others v Minister for Immigration,Local Government and Ethnic Affairs (1992) 176 CLR 1; Polyukhovic v The Commonwealth (1991) 172 CLR401; Dietrich v The Queen (1992) 177 CLR 292; Cheatle v The Commonwealth (1993) 177 CLR 541; Plenty v Dillon (1990) 171 CLR 635; Secretary, Department of Health and Community Services v JWB and SMB (1992) 175 CLR 218; Leeth v The Commonwealth (1992) 174 CLR 455; Waters v Public Transport Corporation (1991) 173 CLR 349.For an analysis of all these cases see P Bailey,above n 155.

158 P Bailey,above n 155 at 33.

159 DOGS(1981)146 CLR 559 at 605 per Stephen J.

160 ACTV (1992)177 CLR 106 at 136.

161 Grace Bible Church v Reedman (1984) 36 SASR 376 at 379 per Zelling J.

162 Scientology (1983)154 CLR 120 at 130.

163 S McLeish,above n 5 at 210.

164 (1992) 177 CLR 106.

165 Glass, A,“Freedom of Speech and the Constitution: Australian Capital Television and the Application of Constitutional Rights”(1995) 17 SydLR 29 at 32Google Scholar.

166 See I Willox, “PM says Pope is on his side on policy” Age 11 October 1995 at 7; M Grattan, “Mixed Signals from on High” Age 11 October 1995 at 4; P Daley, “Leaders on a Mission from God” Sunday Age 15 October 1995 at 11.

167 Aboven 16.

168 In the 1996 Presidential election President Clinton feared that “the [Christian] coalition can make a difference of five points in a lot of states”:M Walker, “Religious Right Sets Sights on Clinton in the South” Age 5 November 1996 at A9.