Smith v. Calvary Christian Church
Smith v. Calvary Christian Church
Concurring Opinion
I concur in the result of the majority opinion. I write separately to state that I do not join the majority’s constitutional discussion in part II because it is unnecessary to the resolution of this case. See ante, pp 683-685. As to the plaintiff’s tort claim of intentional infliction of emotional distress, I note that this Court has not recognized or adopted that tort, see Roberts v Auto-Owners Ins Co, 422 Mich 594; 374 NW2d 905 (1985), and does not do so here. See ante, p 686, n 7. Finally as to plaintiff’s invasion of privacy claim, I agree that summary disposition for the defendant was appropriate pursuant to MCR 2.116(C)(10) (no genuine issue of material fact).
Opinion of the Court
In this case, we are asked to decide whether plaintiffs intentional tort claims arising from church discipline are barred by the religion clauses of the federal constitution. Even if those constitutional provisions do not provide any defense to plaintiffs claims, however, plaintiff cannot prevail in this action. Through his words and deeds, plaintiff consented to the religious discipline imposed on him, so his claims fail as a matter of tort law. Accordingly, we reverse the judgment of the Court of Appeals, and reinstate the trial court’s grant of summary disposition under MCR 2.116(C)(10) for the defendants.
i
Plaintiff began attending Calvary Christian Church, a small, independent church, in August 1985. He formally became a church member in early 1986. When he became a member, plaintiff specifically consented not to cause division within the church, to be faithful
Shortly after he began to attend the church, plaintiff requested a meeting with the church’s pastor, Mark Byers. At that meeting, plaintiff disclosed that he previously had frequented prostitutes. Plaintiff apparently believed that this disclosure would be kept confidential.
Later, in 1991, plaintiff was formally removed from the church’s membership. He was removed not because of his disclosure, but rather because he was causing division within the church by challenging church leaders over religious doctrine. Plaintiff requested that he be reinstated, but the pastor advised that before plaintiff could be reinstated, he had to confess his sins, including his past indiscretions with prostitutes, to the church board and to plaintiff’s wife. Plaintiff complied and was reinstated, but the board warned him that if he did not end his divisive conduct, he would again be subject to discipline.
Despite this warning, plaintiff continued to cause division within the church. Therefore, the church decided to “mark” plaintiff according to Matthew
On the basis of this revelation, plaintiff filed suit, alleging several causes of action. First, he asserted that his disclosure was confidential, and that the pastor repeating it to the congregation violated MCL 600.2156; MSA 27A.2156.
The Court of Appeals affirmed on the statutory and contract claims, but reversed and remanded the tort claims. After reviewing cases discussing the First Amendment Free Exercise Clause in the context of religious discipline, doctrine, and polity, the Court remanded for a determination of whether plaintiff was a member of the church when he was marked. The Court reasoned that if plaintiff was a member, then judicial examination of the marking process would be barred by the Free Exercise Clause; however, if he was not a member, the Court reasoned that the church would have had no power to discipline plaintiff, and his tort claims may have been viable. 233 Mich App 96; 592 NW2d 713 (1998). Defendant appealed the remand order, and this Court granted leave. 461 Mich 947 (2000).
n
Throughout this case, the defendants have argued that plaintiff’s claims are barred by the First Amend
Plaintiff, of course, disputes these defenses. He argues that his claims do not involve any question of religious polity or doctrine, avoiding the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine. Further, he argues that because Michigan tort law is valid, neutral, and of general applicability, defendants do not have a free exercise defense. See Employment Div, Oregon Dep’t of Human Resources v Smith, 494 US 872, 879; 110 S Ct 1595; 108 L Ed 2d 876 (1990).
A
Although these competing claims present interesting and complex constitutional issues, we do not believe that resolving them is necessary to decide this case. Instead, we can simply assume without deciding that plaintiff is correct that these constitutional defenses do not apply. Similarly, because the defendants expressly waived any reliance on the Michigan Constitution,
B
Plaintiff alleges that the defendants committed the torts of invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress. However, the extent of plain
Plaintiff manifested his consent to the church’s practices in several ways. First, he became actively engaged in the church in' 1985, and shortly after, he explicitly consented in writing to obey the church’s law, and to accept the church’s discipline “with a free, humble, and thankful heart.” Thus, plaintiff can be taken to have impliedly consented by his active engagement and participation in the church, or to have expressly consented through his writing. 4 Restatement Torts, 2d, § 892, p 362. Any doubt whether plaintiff appreciated the scope of his consent by his active engagement is certainly resolved by the explicit writing. Further, as the Supreme Court stated over 130 years ago, “[a] 11 who unite themselves to such a body do so with an implied consent to this [church] government, and are bound to submit to it.” Watson, supra at 729.
However, plaintiff argues, relying on the Oklahoma court’s decision in Guinn v Church of Christ, 775 P2d 766 (Okla, 1989), that he revoked consent when he resigned his church membership. In Guinn, the plaintiff’s perceived misdeeds subjected her to the same marking process as the instant plaintiff. She resigned her church membership and disassociated herself from the church, but the church marked her anyway.
We disagree with plaintiff’s argument because church membership alone is not dispositive of whether plaintiff consented to the church’s practices. For example, a person may be a full participant in a church, fully aware of and actively engaged in all of its practices, without ever having become a formal church member. Through knowledge and actions, a person so engaged with the church would indicate consent to the church’s practices although the person never became a church “member.” Further, “membership” is an amorphous concept.
Instead, consent is the relevant consideration.
m
In conclusion, we hold that because reasonable minds cannot disagree that plaintiff consented to the church’s practices, and manifested his continuing consent by remaining actively engaged with the church, his intentional tort claims against the defendants fail as a matter of tort law. Because tort law disposes of the plaintiff’s claims, we need not consider the constitutional defenses the defendants presented. The judgment of the Court of Appeals is reversed, and summary disposition for the defendants is reinstated.
This passage provides:
Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone; if he shall hear thee, thou has gained thy brother.
But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church; but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. [The Holy Bible, Matthew 18:15-17 (King James Version).]
This section is in chapter 21 of the Revised Judicature Act, which concerns evidence. The section provides:
No minister of the gospel, or priest of any denomination whatsoever, or duly accredited Christian Science practitioner, shall be allowed to disclose any confessions made to him in his professional character, in the course of discipline enjoined by the rules or practice of such denomination.
Plaintiff named both the church itself and the pastor individually as defendants.
The religion clauses of the First Amendment state:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof .... [US Const, Am I.]
These provisions apply to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment. Cantwell v Connecticut, 310 US 296, 303; 60 S Ct 900; 84 L Ed 1213 (1940).
The United States Supreme Court has not stated whether this doctrine is derived from the Establishment Clause or the Free Exercise Clause, but has simply spoken in terms of the First Amendment. See Serbian Eastern Orthodox Diocese v Milivojevich, 426 US 696, 708-720; 96 S Ct 2372; 49 L Ed 2d 151 (1976). Perhaps this is because the doctrine has roots in both clauses; declaring a religious decision’s correctness would simultaneously establish that decision and inhibit the free exercise of an opposing belief. See 5 Nowak & Rotunda, Constitutional Law (3d ed), § 21.12, p 572.
Const 1963, art 1, § 4 provides protections for religious freedom.
We have not been asked to, and do not, consider whether the tort of intentional infliction of emotional distress exists in Michigan. In this case, plaintiff cannot prevail regardless of the tort’s existence.
See Bradley, Churches and Church Membership in the United States 1990 (Atlanta: Glenmary Research Center, 1990), p xiv. The authors list defining membership as the most critical methodological problem in calculating church membership. They also note that persons associated with churches could be classified as regular church members with full membership status, regular participants in churches who partake in all of the churches’ formalities and custom yet are not members with full membership status, or simple adherents to the church’s religious beliefs. An additional problem is that “membership” has varying meanings for different faiths. See, e.g., 12 New Catholic Encyclopedia, p 997 (describing the different levels of membership in the Catholic Church).
See, generally, Eliade, Bites and Symbols of Initiation (New York: Harper & Row, 1965), p ix.
See, e.g., Zollman, American Church Law, § 328, p 312 (“It is perfectly clear that, whatever church relationship is maintained in the United States, is not a matter of status. It is based ... on voluntary consent”).
We recognize, but need not decide, another issue in this case. That issue is whether religious discipline imposed on a person who is not a member of the disciplining religious body, or who is not consenting to the body’s authority when the discipline is imposed, nevertheless arose out of events that occurred during the person’s period of membership or consent. Allowing a person who was a member of a religious body or consented to such a body’s practices to escape discipline for actions that occurred during the period of membership or consent by severing ties to
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