EA ORNEY GENE-L 

OF EXAS 

AUSTIN ax. TEXAW 

WILL WILSON 

July 31, 1962 

Honorable Jack Fields 

County Attorney 

Opinion No. WW-1409 

Calhoun County Courthouse Re : Authority of County CommisPort Lavaca, Texas sioners' Court to expend tax 

funds for the construction 

and maintenance of a chapel in 

connection with a county hosDear Mr. Fields: pital. 

Your request for opinion on the above captioned question reads in part as follows: 

"Calhoun County in 1948, by the employment 

of local tax funds and Federal funds 

c 

constructed 

a County Hospital in the City of Por Lavaca, 

Texas. 

"This hospital was expanded in 1952, and in 

1961 an additional $700,000.00 in bonds was voted 

for a three-story addition, which work is now in 

progress. 

"'Ihe original plan of the new structure provided for a chapel for family use and ministerial 

services, as is customarily provided in many hospitals. The construction of this chapel has not 

been authorized by the Court and its approval has 

been postponed until sufficient tax funds are made 

available and all questions as to legality of such 

expenditures are determined. 

,t . . . 

"It is for that reason we request a ruling as 

to whether or not a Commissioners Court is authorized to expend tax funds for the construction and 

maintenance of a chapel as a part of County Hospital service." 

This office has previously considered several situations, cited below, where chapels have been constructed with 

private funds and placed as instrumentalities of various state 

institutions, but we have heretofore not been requested to rule 
_I 

Honorable Jack Fields, page 2 (WW-1409) 

on the situation wherein public funds are to be used for construction of a chapel or other building to be used as a 

of worship. 

Section 6 of Article I of the Constitution of 

states as follows: 

"All men have a natural and indefeasible 

right to worship Almighty God according to the 

dictates of their own consciences. No man shall, 

-Q e co attend, erect or SUDDOrt anv 

place of worshin, or to mainta anv ministry 

minst hi c nsent. No human authority ought, 

in any casZ w:atever, to control or interfere 

with the rights of conscience in matters of 

religion, and no,preference shall ever be given 

by law to any religious society or mode of worship. But it shall be the duty of the Legislature to pass such laws as may be necessary to 

protect equally every religious denomination in 

the peaceable enjoyment of its own mode of public worship." (Emphasis added) 

Section 7 of that Article states: 

"No money shall be appropriated, or drawn 

from the Treasury for the benefit of any sect, 

or religious society, theological or religious 

seminary; nor shall D wertm to the 

State be aww wriatedrgor anv such wurnoses." 

L(Emphasis ad%d) 

place . 

Texas 

You will note that Section 6 refers to "an place of 

worship . . .I1 In the case of Church v. Bullock, 10 c Tex. 1, 

109 S.W. 115 (1908), the Supreme Court stated at page 118: 

11 . . . As used in the Constitution the 

phrase 'place of worship' specifically means a 

place where a number of persons meet together for 

the purpose of worshiping God. 

N.C. 492. 

State v. Swink, 20 

The Century Dictionary gives this definition: 'A building or part of a building set 

apart for any purpose--as a place of worship.' The 

worship of God is not prohibited in any place, but 

we are of the opinion that the spirit of the Constitution would include any place at which the worship might be indulged in so continuously and in 

such a manner as to give it the character of 'a 

place of worship.' Buildings 
Honorable Jack Fields, page 3 (WW-1409) 

erected and maintained bv the state cann t be 

used for such wuroose& We do not underiake 

to state any rule as ti what will constitute 

a 'place of worship.1 That must necessarily 

depend upon the facts of each case. . . .I1 

CEmphasis added) 

Black'sLaw Dictionary (4th Ed. 19511, defines worship 

in the following language: 

"Any form of religious service showing 

reverence for Divine Being, or exhortation to 

obedience to or following of the mandates of 

such Being. . . .It 

In Attorney General's Opinions Nos. V-940 (1949) and 

:S<i-1269 (1962) this office was questioned as to the legality of 

a PriVatelV financed chapel and religious building on two state 

college campuses. Such facilities were approved, but please note 

that no state or county funds were to be used in the construction 

or erection thereof. 

We are constrained to hold that the Commissioners' 

Court of Calhoun County may not expend tax funds for the construction or erection of a chapel in the county hospital. Such 

expenditure would be in violation of Section 6 of Article I of 

the Constitution of Texas. 

SUMMARY 

The Commissioners' Court of Calhoun County 

may not expend tax funds for the construction 

and maintenance of a chapel in connection with 

a county hospital. 

Very truly yours, 

WILL WILSON 

Attorney General of Texas 

FDW:mkh:wb 

&&g&q 

Fred D. Ward 

Assistant 
Honorable Jack Fields, page 4 (WW-1409) 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

W. V. Geppert, Chairman 

L. P. Lollar 

Sam Stone 

Grady Chandler 

REVIEWED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

BY: Leonard Passmore