"Nonsense on Stilts" or a Legitimate Human Rights Issue: Is the Saying of Council Prayers a Breach of Dissenters' Freedom of Religion?

Abstract

This paper discusses the implications council prayers have on a dissenter’s right to freedom of religion. The paper analyses the freedom of religion portion of the judgment of Ouseley J in Bideford Town Council to explore the issues council prayers raise with regard to the right of freedom of religion. The decision in the judgment is analysed in light of overseas jurisprudence from the United States and Canada after carefully exploring what the right of freedom of religion protects and which part of it is affected by the practice of council prayers. The discussion is drawn back to the implications it has for the practice of council prayers in New Zealand after the Wanganui District Council was influenced by the decision of Bideford Town Council to stop its prayer practice. The paper concludes that if the prayers are clearly voluntary, they should not breach the dissenter’s right to freedom of religion.