Religious guide a good first step to helpful debate

It has become one of the easiest knee-jerk reactions in politics: If something doesn't seem right, amend the U.S. Constitution.

Religious freedom hasn't escaped such a fate. A growing number of lawmakers, including U.S. Rep. Charles Stenholm, have signed on to efforts to change the First Amendment, spelling out what you can and can't do.

It's unnecessary, and President Clinton last week took a tiny but welcome step in the opposite direction by clarifying how much freedom of religious expression federal workers have on the job. The guidelines should become a model for state and private employers, as well.

True, courts have made a muddle of religious freedom laws, and a few wrong-headed decisions have provoked an equally wrong-headed outcry warning of religious "persecution." What's needed is education about exactly what freedoms case law allows.

"These guidelines will help clarify what was a very confusing area of law," said Oliver Thomas, special counsel for religious and civil liberties at the National Council of Churches. "This is a very important breakthrough, so employees and employers understand what their rights are."

Among other things, the guidelines allow workers to keep a Bible or Koran on their desks and to discuss religious beliefs with co-workers as long as those workers don't object. In addition, supervisors are expected to accommodate religious holidays in scheduling, even if that creates some hardship for the agency.

One group, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, condemned the guidelines for going too far. Some conservative groups argue they don't go far enough. Most Americans would probably feel they are just about right.

Further, a number of educators have asked for clearer guidelines on what religious freedoms are allowed on public campuses. More is allowed than many school leaders realize, they say.

This is a debate we should be having, long before we start talking about amending the Constitution.