Appeals panel: Primary parent chooses child's religious education

[rainbow4321]

http://cbsnewyork.com/njnews/NJ--Parents-Religion-jn/resources_news_html

A primary guardian should choose a child's religious upbringing, a state appeals panel ruled Wednesday in siding with a divorced, Jewish father who did not want his children to attend classes about his ex-wife's Catholic faith.

The ruling, which overturns a lower-court decision, gives Howard Feldman the sole authority to determine the religious schooling of his three children. Bridget Howell had wanted their children to attend Catholic classes while they visited her, but the court said that was not her decision to make since he took primary custody of the children in 2001.

``Allowing the non-custodial parent to formally education the children in a second religion ... runs contrary to the right that the primary caretaker has to educate the children in the religion of his choice,'' the court said in its decision

The court did rule that the children could celebrate Howell's religious holidays and attend church with her during their visits with their mother. The religious spat between the parents began in September 2002 when Howell asked the court to order that her children attend Catholic education classes. A lower court judge agreed, and said Howell had to enroll the one son old enough for the schooling in classes during her visitations on weekdays. She instead enrolled him on Sundays, despite her ex-husband having custody on every other weekend.