May/June 2004

France clearly has a problem with its religious minorities. But is it a cultural, political, or social problem?

A $1,125 scholarship hardly seems worth the attention of constitutional scholars, high-priced appellate attorneys, and the Court of last resort. But that is exactly what happened when Washington Sate student Joshua Davey applied for the Washington Promise Scholarship program and then declared his double major in pastoral ministries and business management.

After a rather short debate in the lower chamber of the French Parliament, the law banning symbols of religious affiliation in the public schools was adopted on February 10, 2004, with a majority of 494 votes to 36. Actually, the problem has a long history in France, reflecting certain characteristics of the political culture and national mentality that are worth contemplating because of the virtual impact on other aspects of the national life in a major Western democracy.

As our jet descended rather noisily through thin cloud cover toward Ambon airport in the Maluku province of Indonesia, what we saw suggested a tropical paradise.

Every morning the president starts his day in the Oval Office, surrounded by attorney general John Ashcroft, FBI director Robert Mueller, and CIA director George Tenet, reviewing the threat matrix.

As a citizen of the United States, the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks made me feel violated, insecure, and helpless. Ironically, some of the American government’s response is also making me feel violated, insecure, and helpless. We have seen the passage of the U.S.A.
Patriot Act and establishment of the new Department of Homeland Security. I
understand that anti-terrorism measures are meant to protect the safety and freedom of the American people; however, I am worried that
the government might use these same measures to discriminate against its citizens, resulting in an effective stifling of religious liberty as we know it in the United States.
As a student of international affairs, I am taught to analyze and to think critically about events that take place in this country and in the world around me. This article is an outgrowth of that critical thought. Much can be learned by soliciting the opinions of
others. I decided to ask some of my contemporaries a few questions relating to
issues that concern me: