Jerome Taylor: Religious freedom is not an absolute right
At the heart of this legal and moral debate is the question of competing rights
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The European Court of Human Rights gets a regular kicking in the British press, often unfairly. So it’s good to see that the judges in Strasbourg have come up with a series of careful and nuanced rulings on the issue of religious discrimination that are a cracking advertisement for exactly why we need such a court.
At the heart of this legal and moral debate is the question of competing rights. Religious freedom is a vital human right recognised by both UK and European law. But it is not an absolute right. That’s because occasionally the religious views of one person may impinge upon the equally valid rights of another group of people.
Religious opposition to same-sex relationships is the most common current example of this dilemma. Those with theologically inspired opposition to same-sex relationships are allowed to be anti-gay. They can disapprove of same-sex relationships, publicly speak out against them and say gays are damned to eternal hellfire if they like.
But where the courts are often asked to draw a line is when a religious person directly impinges the rights of a gay person. It’s a classic example of the liberalism espoused by J S Mill. Generally, we should be allowed to do, say and believe what we like – so long as what we do doesn’t harm (and that does not include causing offence) others.
By backing Britain’s legal system in three out of the four cases the Court has effectively reinforced a point it has made many times before. But it’s an important one to restate again and again: religious rights don’t trump rights of others unless there is a very good reason. A balance has to be struck and in these cases, the Court ruled, the British courts had done the right thing.
For the Christian lobby, who have portrayed these legal fights as part of a wider battle to counter faith being marginalised and persecuted, it’s a loss. What the European Court of Human Rights hasn’t done is give Christians – or any other religion – carte blanche to discriminate against others on the grounds of belief. And it means future claims where Christians have discriminated against gay men and women when offering services (such as a B&B room) and then pleaded religious freedom are less likely to succeed.
But the Christian lobby shouldn’t feel too down because there is a silver lining. The legal point that competing rights don’t automatically trump each other might protect them one day. After all, if a gay B&B owner refuses to accommodate a Christian because of their beliefs; or a gay person refuses to marry a Christian couple; or provide them relationship counselling – there’s a strong chance they’d win their case in the courts for the same reasons.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments