Washington Ethical Society v. District of Columbia
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/* Significance */ fix grammatical error
'''Washington Ethical Society v. District of Columbia''' was a 1957 case of the [[United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit|U.S. Court of Appeals]]. The [[Washington Ethical Society]] functions much like a church, but regards itself as a [[non-theistic]] religious institution, honoring the importance of [[ethical]] living without mandating a belief in a [[supernatural]] origin for ethics. The case involved denial of the Society's application for tax exemption as a religious organization. The [[United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit|D.C. Circuit]] court reversed the Tax Court's ruling, defined the Society as a [[religious]] organization, and granted its tax exemption.
== Significance ==
Along with [[Fellowship of Humanity v. County of Alameda]], this was one of the earliest cases establishing the right in the U.S. of [[nontheistic]] institutions that function like churches to be treated similarly to [[theistic]] religious institutions under the law.
This case is sometimes cited as establishing [[Secular Humanism]] as a religion under the law. That characterization of the case is disputed by others, for a number of reasons:
* Different groups use the term [[secular humanism]] differently. According to some definitions, the Society does not practice secular humanism. The Society practices ''[[Ethical Culture]]'', the philosophy of a movement founded in 1876, predating the modern [[Humanist (lifestance)|Humanist]] movement. While ''Ethical Culture'' is, broadly speaking, a [[humanist]] philosophy, it has its own distinct character. As practiced by the ''Washington Ethical Society'', it is in many respects more aligned with [[religious humanism]] than with [[secular humanism]].
*The court decision did not address the question of whether the ideas of ''Ethical Culture'' were inherently religious; it merely determined that the ''Washington Ethical Society'' functioned like a church and so was entitled to similar protections.
*In the [[obiter dictum]] note in the case [[Torcaso v. Watkins]] in which Justice [[Hugo Black]] apparently coined the term [[Secular Humanism]], this case was referenced but the term Secular Humanism apparently referred to the case [[Fellowship of Humanity v. County of Alameda]].
== Rationale for decision ==
The decision was written by Justice [[Warren Burger]], predating his appointment to the [[U.S. Supreme Court]]. The decision stated:
:The sole issue raised is whether petitioner falls within the definition of a "church" or a "religious society" . . . . The taxing authority urges denial of the tax exemption asserting petitioner is not a religious society or church and that it does not use its buildings for religious worship since "religious" and "worship" require a belief in and teaching of a Supreme Being who controls the universe. The position of the tax Court, in denying tax exemption, was that belief in and teaching of the existence of a Divinity is essential to qualify under the statute. . . . To construe exemptions so strictly that unorthodox or minority forms of worship would be denied the exemption benefits granted to those conforming to the majority beliefs might well raise constitutional issues . . . . The question before us now is not broadly whether petitioner is in an ecclesiastical sense a religious society or a church, but narrowly whether under this particular statute it is qualified for tax exemption. . . . We hold on this record and under the controlling statutory language petitioner qualifies as "a religious corporation or society" . . . .
== References ==
{{wikisource}}
*[[s:Washington Ethical Society v. District of Columbia|Washington Ethical Society v. District of Columbia (101 U.S. App. D.C. 371).]]
[[Category:United States Court of Appeals cases]]
[[Category:1957 in law]]