The Obama administration encountered spirited resistance for its alleged indifference to the free exercise of religion when it proposed to require that all institutions, including those affiliated with churches, provide contraception as part of their health plans.
On the other hand, last week the administration issued to the Northern Arapaho Tribe in Wyoming a federal permit to kill two bald eagles, whose feathers and other body parts are highly prized by the tribe for use in religious ceremonies.
Back when bald eagles were plentiful -- as many as half a million lived in North America in the 18th century -- American Indians trapped and killed eagles freely. Many tribes used eagle feathers, claws and other body parts as the paraphernalia of sacred ceremonies, prayers and dances. Honors were bestowed by the gift of an eagle feather, and even today in some Indian high schools, graduation is marked by the awarding of an eagle feather.
The taking of bald eagles by American Indians probably had virtually no impact on the eagle population, but reduced habitat, illegal hunting and high-voltage power lines did. Eagles were particularly threatened in the 1950s by the pesticide DDT, which caused a thinning of their eggshells and a significantly reduced reproduction rate.
By the early 1960s, around 400 nesting pairs of bald eagles remained.
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The Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act of 1962 outlawed virtually all interference with bald eagles in the wild, including the killing or capturing of eagles for religious purposes.
To serve an ongoing demand for ceremonial eagle parts, in the early 1970s the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service established the National Eagle Repository, a clearinghouse for the carcasses of eagles that had died of natural causes or been killed in accidents. Any member of a federally recognized American Indian tribe can apply for as much as one whole eagle or for eagle parts that are equivalent to no more than one whole eagle, for example, two wings and one head. The parts may be used for religious purposes only.
This system isn't entirely satisfactory. The repository reports that 95 percent of all requests are for whole eagles and that 5,000 names are on the waiting list to acquire one of the approximately 1,000 dead eagles that it receives each year. The wait can be as long as 3 1/2 years.
Furthermore, although the repository tries to ship within three to five days, as you can imagine, the dead eagles do not always arrive in the best condition.
In the meantime, under federal protection the wild eagle population has made a remarkable recovery. In 2007, the species was removed from the "threatened" list. And even though their numbers are far below pre-Columbian levels, bald eagles are now thriving in places where they hadn't been seen in years.
So, clearly the Obama administration made the right decision to allow the Arapahos to kill two eagles; they seem a small price to pay for the protection of the free exercise of religion.
Still, the world remains a dangerous place for eagles, both individuals and the species, and one wonders if the deaths of two of these spectacular and magnificent creatures in the service of religion or tradition are justified.
I don't mean to single out Indians. Religions of all stripes sometimes lag behind mankind's more advanced efforts toward enlightenment, just as they sometimes lead. Bloodletting and sacrifice of both animals and humans have been important parts of the Judeo-Christian heritage -- after all, Christ was a human sacrifice.
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Nevertheless, if human progress means anything, aren't some practices -- slavery, polygamy, sacrificial bloodletting of humans and animals -- best left in the past? Clearly, certain Americans have the right to kill eagles for religious ceremonies. Perhaps it's time, however, to get beyond the actual practice.
Crisp teaches in the English Department at Del Mar College in Corpus Christi, Texas.
