| They aren’t the Grinches who want to steal Christmas, but Calgary humanists are questioning the propriety of the city owning and displaying a nativity scene in the atrium of the municipal building.
For years, a city-owned nativity scene depicting the birth of Christ has been displayed in the atrium of the municipal building. Although other religious groups also use the atrium with the permission of the city – including a Jewish group for a Hanukkah ceremony later this month – Jeff Perkins, president of the Society for Secular Humanism in Calgary, says the city’s ownership and display of a religious scene breaches the line separating church and state.
"If they own (the nativity scene)... then it’s the city doing it and not the city allowing it to be done," Perkins says. "I think that’s an important difference."
Bill Gray, the facilities operations supervisor for the city, says the scene has been displayed for as long as he has worked with the city, but he says the city seeks to be accommodating to all religions.
"No group asked that the nativity scene be set up. It’s been part of our Christmas setup since at least 1996," says Gray. "We try to be tolerant to all. We’ve become a more diverse country and city."
The city makes the atrium available for their own events and "community, school, and registered charitable and non-profit organizations." Applications to use the atrium and the city plaza are made through the city clerk’s office.
Perkins says he would have no problem if an outside Christian group was allowed to use the atrium for a nativity scene as long as religious and non-religious organizations have equal access – but he worries when the city takes it upon itself to highlight a religious event.
"The atrium is like the town square, it is a public space," says Perkins, whose group was incorporated in 2002. "The employees are multicultural and diverse. The city should rethink their approach. Times have changed." |
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