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Should a divorce court be able to forbid one parent to take a child to church?

Should a divorce court be able to forbid one parent to take a child to church?

  • Yes they should be able to favor one religion in a divorce dispute

    Votes: 1 2.2%

  • Each parent should be allowed to expose the child to their respective faiths

    Votes: 23 50.0%

  • The court should butt out of disputes of a religious nature

    Votes: 17 37.0%

  • The parents should have thought of this ahead of time.

    Votes: 1 2.2%

  • Other, please explain

    Votes: 4 8.7%
  • Total voters
    46
MyOwnDrum

MyOwnDrum

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What's your opinion? Here's the story:

Divorce Battle: Joseph Reyes Pleads Not Guilty For Taking Daughter to Church - ABC News

The parents are getting divorced and the wife is Jewish, the husband Catholic. The mother wants the child raised Jewish, the husband, not previously devout, got the little girl baptized, the mother got a restraining order, yada yada...


A Chicago man who defied a court order and took his toddler to a Catholic Church service was arraigned today on a charge of indirect criminal contempt in a custody battle that is threatening to put him in jail and draw new boundaries in divorce cases.
Father defies court order and takes his daughter to church.

Joseph Reyes pleaded not guilty for allegedly violating a court order issued by Chicago family law Judge Edward R. Jordan who had barred Reyes from taking his 3-year-old daughter to church following a dispute over religion with his estranged wife. Reyes' wife, Rebecca Reyes, is Jewish.

Reyes, a veteran of the Afghan war, made a motion to have his contempt charges heard by a different judge, a motion that was granted. He was arraigned before Judge Elizabeth Loredo-Rivera.

If found guilty of indirect criminal contempt, Reyes could be sentenced to up to six months in jail.

The next court date is on March 3, when Reyes is expected to file a motion to dismiss all charges against him.

In a statement issued after the hearing, Reyes said, "There's a strong possibility I could end up in jail. It's really sad it's come to this."

Reyes and his wife are in abitter divorce battle, and the question of what faith their child should be raised in is pushing the boundaries of child custody arrangements.

Reyes' decision to baptize his daughter without his wife's permission resulted in what some are calling an extraordinary court order: Jordan in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Ill., imposed a 30-day restraining order forbidding Joseph Reyes from, according to the document, "exposing his daughter to any other religion than the Jewish religion. …"
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Very difficult question

Which parent should have the right to determine the religion of the childern (up untill the age the child can determine for themselves of course)

I would say the parent with primary custody should be the one to determine the religion of said child/ern.
 
I think that each parent should be able to take the child to his/her church when the child is in the care of said parent.
 
lizzie said:
I think that each parent should be able to take the child to his/her church when the child is in the care of said parent.
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I totally agree. Both parents knew they were marrying, having sexual relations, and having a child with someone from a different faith tradition. Being adults, they have the responsibility to realize that a person, if not now devout, could easily return to their original faith.

The Jewish religion says that a child born of a Jewish woman is a Jew. The Catholic religion demands that a child of a mixed marriage should be raised Catholic.

The State should butt out, and each parent, during their time with their child, should be free to include their child in their worship activities.
 
Whatever parent has custody of the child at any particular moment can teach any religion they like. There is no grounds to force a choice either way. It'll suck for the kid, but most divorces sadly do.
 
What I am curious about is, why does a woman who denies the reality of Christian baptism care about the sprinking of water on the forehead of her child, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, something she disbelieves in?

If it has no meaning, why is it so meaningful to her?
 
MyOwnDrum said:
The State should butt out, and each parent, during their time with their child, should be free to include their child in their worship activities.
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Besides that, I think that exposure to more than one religion can be a good thing for people. It probably helps them be a little more open-minded in general.
 
MyOwnDrum said:
What I am curious about is, why does a woman who denies the reality of Christian baptism care about the sprinking of water on the forehead of her child, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, something she disbelieves in?

If it has no meaning, why is it so meaningful to her?
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It's probably more that she hates her ex, and it's a way to be spiteful to him.
 
lizzie said:
It's probably more that she hates her ex, and it's a way to be spiteful to him.
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And he was probably sticking it to her by getting the girl baptized... :rolleyes:
 
Exactly. The child has become a stick for each parent to beat the other with. Damn shame.
 
As long as the church isn't harming the child or considered by a law a cult(defined as a church that goes out of it's way to harm other people) The 1st amendment says no.
 
Just be glad it is not up to me, divorce fans. I would insist that once married, it would be, "until death do us part". ---that would put a stop to all this "two years, and I'm off to the next guy" crapola. People make poor decisions, and the Children suffer.
 
StandUpChuck said:
Hence the involvement of the court.
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What I can't figure out is why the judge ordered him not to expose the child to any religion other than Jewish. It makes no sense to me, but since I don't know the whole story, I am perplexed.
 
MyOwnDrum said:
What's your opinion? Here's the story:

Divorce Battle: Joseph Reyes Pleads Not Guilty For Taking Daughter to Church - ABC News

The parents are getting divorced and the wife is Jewish, the husband Catholic. The mother wants the child raised Jewish, the husband, not previously devout, got the little girl baptized, the mother got a restraining order, yada yada...
Click to expand...

The judge has no business in this matter.It is a blatant violation of the 1st amendment seeing how they are not supposed to make any laws for or against religion. When the wife has the child she can take her to synagogue and when the husband has the child he can take her to a catholic church.
 
If both parents respected the child more, this wouldn't be a problem. Let the kid decide.
 
BTW, I choose options 2 and 4.

Yeah the 2 consenting adults should have thought this one out before ****ing up the life of their unconsenting minor, but the court has no business or authority to tell one parents they can't take their child to religious functions.
 
Mellie said:
Kids shouldn't be in charge.
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Yes, when it comes to following many rules, this is true. Kids should be made to pick up their room or to eat their vegetables. When it comes to which religion they prefer, they will decide on their own regardless of what the parent does or thinks.
 
The child should be the one to decide. If the child is too young to choose, both parents should be allowed to expose the child to their respective religion until the child is deemed old enough to make the choice them self.

Baptisms and other religious traditions should be postponed until the child chooses his or her religion.
 
Kids aren't mature enough to choose a religion especially when each parent has a different religon and the kid is being forced to choose one parent or the other. It's the parents' job to make wise decisions to ensure that their children are well-adjusted.

Do you also think the child should choose what parent he wants to live with when his parents get a divorce?
 
Jucon said:
The child should be the one to decide. If the child is too young to choose, both parents should be allowed to expose the child to their respective religion until the child is deemed old enough to make the choice them self.

Baptisms and other religious traditions should be postponed until the child chooses his or her religion.
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Waiting until they're adults defeats the purpose.

Wait until the child is finished socializing into society so that they can choose for themselves how they will be socialized into society while growing up....you're not making any sense here.....but at least you aren't one the parents who ****ed up this child's life.
 
Mellie said:
Kids aren't mature enough to choose a religion especially when each parent has a different religon and the kid is being forced to choose one parent or the other. It's the parents' job to make wise decisions to ensure that their children are well-adjusted.

Do you also think the child should choose what parent he wants to live with when his parents get a divorce?
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Whether they are mature enough or not, they will do it anyway. Religion is not some social club you join because that's what your parents happen to believe or choose for you. It is always a decision that a person or child makes for themselves. Even people who follow a certain religion because that is how they were raised or tradition are making a choice.

I have a 5 year old child who is a determined atheist, despite many christian influences coming from his immediate and extended family. There is no possible way I could have chosen that for him. It is simply impossible since I do not possess mind control powers.

I think children should have input into the decision of which parent to live with. When my parent split up when I was in the 3rd grade, I was allowed to take part in those sorts of decisions. If my wife and I split up and my kids expressed a desire to either live with me or her, I would honor that decision.
 
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