ATTACKING RELIGIOUS CULTS
Civil Liberties Groups Are Up In Arms
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Recently, France has enacted legislation repressing religious freedom in that country. Religionists and civil liberties groups are up in arms. Outcries from the U.S. and other foreign governments as well as mainstream church leaders have been ignored. The French government has recently passed a bill in its senate that is intended to prevent and repress all groups of a sect-like character. This law makes the practice of one’s religion into a criminal offense.
This new law will allow the courts to dissolve officially designated CULTS under certain conditions. In addition, it creates a new category of crime--abuse of a person “in a state of psychological or physical dependence caused by the exertion of pressure or techniques liable to alter his judgment.” One caught engaging in behavior considered to match that description faces a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment.
One of the problems foreseen by legal analysts is that the legislation is far too vague in its definitions. Key terms such as SECT, DEPENDENCE and PRESSURE are simply left undefined.
Evangelical Christians are perceived by the European Union as a sect, and any group that does not belong to the Roman Catholic Church is viewed by most with suspicion. This classification is nothing new. The early Church was branded a heretical sect, and this was the earliest basis of persecution.
There is now real concern that the French legislation will cause a domino effect within the European Union. Austria, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Spain and some Eastern European countries have already officially identified SECTS for close monitoring. Many of these sects are headquartered in the United States.
This new law will allow the courts to dissolve officially designated CULTS under certain conditions. In addition, it creates a new category of crime--abuse of a person “in a state of psychological or physical dependence caused by the exertion of pressure or techniques liable to alter his judgment.” One caught engaging in behavior considered to match that description faces a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment.
One of the problems foreseen by legal analysts is that the legislation is far too vague in its definitions. Key terms such as SECT, DEPENDENCE and PRESSURE are simply left undefined.
Evangelical Christians are perceived by the European Union as a sect, and any group that does not belong to the Roman Catholic Church is viewed by most with suspicion. This classification is nothing new. The early Church was branded a heretical sect, and this was the earliest basis of persecution.
There is now real concern that the French legislation will cause a domino effect within the European Union. Austria, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Spain and some Eastern European countries have already officially identified SECTS for close monitoring. Many of these sects are headquartered in the United States.