1202.04(c) Matter from Religious Texts

Some proposed marks comprise direct quotations, passages, or citations from religious texts, such as the Bible, Quran, Torah, or Diamond Sutra. These quotations, passages, or citations are often used by the providers of goods or services, and by consumers, to communicate affiliation with, support for, or endorsement of, the ideals or concepts found in the religious texts in which the quotation, passage, or citation originated. Because consumers are accustomed to seeing religious references used in this manner in the marketplace, they are unlikely to perceive the matter as indicating source and instead would perceive it merely as conveying an informational message of religious affiliation, endorsement, or support for the messages in the texts. See In re Eagle Crest, Inc., 96 USPQ2d 1227, 1229 (TTAB 2010).

When a quotation, passage, or citation from a religious text serves as an indicator of support or affiliation and not of source, it fails to function as a mark. Thus, if the proposed mark consists, in its entirety, of this type of matter, the examining attorney must issue a failure-to-function refusal on the ground that it merely conveys an informational message of religious affiliation, endorsement, or support for the ideals or concepts conveyed in the religious text. If the quotation, passage, or citation is part of a proposed mark that also contains registrable elements, the examining attorney must require a disclaimer of the quotation, passage, or citation, if otherwise appropriate. See TMEP §§1213, 1213.01(b), 1213.02, 1213.03(a), 1213.05.

Given the many different translations of religious texts, it is possible that a quotation or passage from one English version of a religious text will be slightly different from the same quotation or passage in a different English translation of the same religious text. However, for purposes of the examining attorney’s determination, it is sufficient that the quotation or passage appears in any version of the relevant religious text.

To support a refusal or disclaimer requirement on this ground, the evidence must establish that the applied-for mark comprises a quotation, passage, or citation taken from a religious text and that consumers would perceive it as merely conveying affiliation with, affinity for, or endorsement of, the religious message. Evidence may include applicant’s own specimens, advertising, or website, showing how the applicant uses the wording in connection with the identified goods or services, as well as the advertising or packaging of other providers of the same or similar goods or services. Any evidence showing that the use of religious matter in connection with the identified goods or services is typical of use by marketplace participants to proclaim support for, affiliation or affinity with, or endorsement of, the message may support this refusal. See D.C. One Wholesaler, Inc. v. Chien, 120 USPQ2d 1710, 1716 (TTAB 2016). While the refusal or disclaimer may apply regardless of whether the identified goods or services themselves are religious in nature, the fact that the proposed mark is applied to religious goods or services may lend further support to the refusal or disclaimer requirement.

Sometimes a quotation or passage from a religious text has become part of common, everyday language. If the evidence shows that the average consumer would be unlikely to perceive the wording as conveying information about the applicant’s religious affiliation or endorsement without additional context, the examining attorney should not issue a failure-to-function refusal based on the wording being from a religious text. Instead, the examining attorney should consider whether the wording fails to function because it conveys a widely used message. See TMEP §1202.04(b). The following examples illustrate this point:

The proposed mark is EYE FOR AN EYE. A review of an online search engine’s results for "eye for an eye" shows that some of the results directly reference religion, but most do not. Many of the results that do not reference religion use the phrase in a discussion of justice. In addition, entering "eye for an eye" into online dictionaries returns results referencing justice, but not religion. This suggests that the wording by itself does not generally have a religious connotation without additional indications of a religious origin, and thus it should not be treated as a quotation or passage from a religious text. But the examining attorney should consider whether the available evidence supports the conclusion that the proposed mark fails to function because it is a commonplace message or otherwise merely conveys a social, political, or ideological message.
The proposed mark is EVEN THOUGH I WALK THROUGH THE VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH, I WILL FEAR NO EVIL. A review of an online search engine’s results for this phrase shows that most of the results reference religion with only a very few that do not directly mention religion. Of the results that reference religion, most specifically note that the wording is from the Bible’s Psalm 23:4. Thus, the results indicate that the wording has ongoing religious connotation even without additional context, and thus the examining attorney should treat it as a direct quotation or passage from a religious text.

If the matter comprising the proposed mark is religious in nature but is not a quotation, passage, or citation from a religious text, the examining attorney should not refuse registration based on the matter being derived from a religious text. Instead, the examining attorney should consider whether it is merely informational because it conveys a widely used religious message. See TMEP §1202.04(b).