Brawling (probably connected with German language ''brüllen'', to roar, shout), in law, was the offence of quarrelling, or creating a disturbance in a

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

or churchyard. Brawling was covered in ecclesiastic courts until 1860. It has rarely been prosecuted since then.

History

During the early stages of the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

in England religious controversy too often became converted into actual disturbance, and the ritual lawlessness of the

parochial Parochial is an adjective which may refer to: * Parishes, in religion ** Parish churches, also called parochial churches * Parochial schools, primary or secondary schools affiliated to a religious organisation * Parochialism Parochialism is the ...

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

very frequently provoked popular violence. To repress these disturbances the Brawling Act 1551 was passed in 1551, by which it was enacted: "that if any person shall, by words only, quarrel, chide or brawl in any church or churchyard, it shall be lawful for the ordinary of the place where the same shall be done and proved by two lawful witnesses, to suspend any person so offending, if he be a layman, from the entrance of the church, and if he be a clerk, from the ministration of his office, for so long as the said ordinary shall think meet, according to the fault." An Act of 1553 added the punishment of imprisonment until the party should repent. The Brawling Act 1551 was partly repealed in 1828 and wholly repealed as regards laymen by the

Ecclesiastical Courts Jurisdiction Act 1860 The Ecclesiastical Courts Jurisdiction Act 1860 (23 & 24 Vict c 32) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It is one of the Ecclesiastical Courts Acts 1787 to 1860. The Act is sometimes known as the "ECJA." Section 1 Section 1 prov ...

. Under that Act, which applies to

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

as well as to England, persons guilty of riotous, violent or indecent behaviour, in churches and chapels of the Church of England or Ireland, or in any chapel of any religious denomination, or in England in any place of religious worship duly certified, or in churchyards or burial-grounds, were liable on conviction before two justices to a penalty of not more than £5, or imprisonment for any term not exceeding two months. This enactment applied to clergy as well as to laity, and a clergyman of the Church of England convicted under it could also be dealt with under the

Clergy Discipline Act 1892 Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

(''Girt v. Fillingham'', 1901, L.R. Prob. 176). When Mr J. Kensit during an ordination service in

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...

"objected" to one of the candidates for ordination, on grounds which did not constitute an impediment or notable crime within the meaning of the ordination service, he was held to have unlawfully disturbed the

Bishop of London A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

in the conduct of the service, and to be liable to conviction under the Act of 1860 (''Kensit'' v. ''Dean and Chapter of St Paul's'', 1905, L.R. 2 K.B. 249). The public worship of

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

Dissenters,

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

s and

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

in England had before 1860 been protected by a series of statutes beginning with the Toleration Act of 1689, and ending with the

Liberty of Religious Worship Act 1855 The Liberty of Religious Worship Act 1855 ( 18 & 19 Vict. c. 86) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Previously the Toleration Act 1689 required all Dissenting places of worship to be registered and the Places of Religious Wo ...

. These enactments, though not repealed, were for practical purposes superseded by the summary remedy given by the Act of 1860. In Scotland disturbance of public worship is punishable as a

breach of the peace Breach of the peace, or disturbing the peace, is a legal term used in constitutional law in English-speaking countries and in a public order sense in the several jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It is a form of disorderly conduct. Public ord ...

(''Dougall'' v. ''Dykes'', 1861, 4 Irvine 101).

In the British Empire

In British possessions abroad, interference with religious worship was usually dealt with by legislation, and not as a common-law offence. In

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

it was an offence voluntarily to cause disturbance to any assembly lawfully engaged in the performance of religious worship or religious ceremonies (Penal Code, s. 296). Under the

Queensland Criminal Code ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

of 1899 (s. 207) penalties were imposed on persons who wilfully and without lawful justification or excuse (the proof of which lies on them) disquiet or disturb any meeting of persons lawfully assembled for religious worship, or assault any forces lawfully officiating at such meeting, or any of the persons there assembled.

In the United States

In the United States disturbance of religious worship is treated as an offence under the

common law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...

, which is in many states supplemented by legislation (see Bishop, ''Amer. Crim. Law,'' 8th ed. 1892, vol. i. s. 542, vol. ii. ss. 303-305; California Penal Code, s. 302; ''Revised Laws of Massachusetts'', 1902, chap. 212, s. 30.). -- (Dissenting correction to the above)

Modern case

In 1998,

Peter Tatchell Peter Gary Tatchell (born 25 January 1952) is a British human rights campaigner, originally from Australia, best known for his work with LGBT social movements. Tatchell was selected as the Labour Party's parliamentary candidate for Bermondsey ...

OutRage! OutRage! was a British political group focused on lesbian and gay rights. Founded in 1990, the organisation ran for 21 years until 2011. It described itself as "a broad based group of queers committed to radical, non-violent direct action and ...

was prosecuted for interrupting the

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...

's Easter sermon with a short gay rights speech. The 1860 legislation (which transferred jurisdiction away from the ecclesiastic courts) was used to try him; his defense focused on the

Human Rights Act 1998 The Human Rights Act 1998 (c. 42) is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom which received royal assent on 9 November 1998, and came into force on 2 October 2000. Its aim was to incorporate into UK law the rights contained in the European Con ...

. He was convicted and fined £18.60 (referring to the 1860 legislation) plus court costs.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brawling (Legal Definition) Crimes in religion Violence Christianity and law in the 19th century

History

In the British Empire

In the United States

Modern case

See also

References