Another example of european-style church restrictions has shown up in our neighbor to the north – investigation of a church for not allowing homosexuals to serve at the alter. LifeSiteNews reports that the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal is forcing Bishop De Angelis to appear before it to defend his diocese against charges of discrimination based on sexual orientation. The Tribunal is responding to a complaint filed by an alter server who was excluded from service because he is engaged in homosexual behavior.

That this investigation is even being pursued threatens the very core of religious freedom: the ability to determine who leads a congregation in worship. Church autonomy is an important legal doctrine that protects religious organizations from government intrusion into the areas of membership, doctrine, governance, and staff. At minimum, this doctrine prohibits government from even questioning how a church determines who leads the congregation during worship services. We need to keep a watchful eye on erosion of church autonomy - even though it may occur in another country. And the U.S. is seeing attacks at the outer edges of this doctrine, such as religious schools, as I noted in a previous post.  Please let ADF know as soon as possible if you hear of an intrusion on church autonomy near you.

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I’ve spent the last couple blogs discussing protecting military chaplains’ religious liberty from the threat posed by normalizing homosexual behavior in the military.  Allow me to take a moment to celebrate that religious liberty.

My wife and I took a road trip to Colorado Springs recently to celebrate our anniversary.  While there, we were able to enjoy some breathtakingly beautiful examples of God’s magnificent creation (which we found particularly impressive because neither of us had ever been to the Rockies before).  For instance, we saw:

Garden of the Gods

Pikes Peak

and Aspen trees (which we both love, but rarely see).

But one of the most beautiful things we experienced was inside the unusually-shaped walls of The Cadet Chapel at the U.S. Air Force Academy.  And while the building itself is a marvel to behold, I’m not referring to it.

Instead, I’m referring to the time of worship we had, led by an Air Force chaplain and shared with a small group of Air Force cadets, members of the community, and tourists (like us!).  The chaplain opened God’s Word to us, teaching about the incredible plan God has for our lives.  No health/wealth/prosperity gospel teacher, the chaplain showed us that the incredible can also be inscrutable, relating the story of his aunt whose courage and grace in facing an untimely and painful death was a catalyst for many to find new life.  And then the chaplain shared with us Communion, administered by him and two surprisingly-young-albeit-competent-looking cadets, which is the remembrance of perhaps the ultimate example of God’s incredible and inscrutable plan.  Our small, impromptu congregation ended this celebration of Christ’s sacrifice together with song praising His grace and goodness.

I left thankful that, in America, citizens can be so led to know and honor their God by chaplains.

Chaplains’ religious liberty is worth standing up for.

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Last year, Bishop Rick Painter, pastor of Cathedral of Christ the King in Phoenix, Arizona, was sentenced to jail for playing the sound of church bells.  The City of Phoenix said he violated a noise ordinance by ringing the church bells and sentenced him to ten days in jail (suspended) and three years of probation.  This case was so astounding that ADF stepped in to represent Bishop Painter and the church to protect their right to ring their church bells.  Little did we know that shortly after stepping in to represent Bishop Painter, the City of Phoenix sent two City Prosecutors and two Police Officers to St. Mark Roman Catholic Parish and threatened the church with prosecution if it did not alter its bell-ringing that had been going on for more than twenty years.

Here’s the kicker – the noise ordinance prohibited the bell sounds but allowed for sounds louder than the bells to go on unchallenged.  Sounds like ice cream trucks and public address systems.  Amazingly, the noise ordinance said it was okay for someone to play music from an ice cream truck at a louder volume and with more frequency than the church bells at these churches.

ADF filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of St. Mark, Cathedral of Christ the King, and First Christian Church in Phoenix who wanted to repair its bell tower but feared prosecution if it started ringing bells again.

A federal judge granted a temporary injunction prohibiting the City from enforcing its noise ordinance against the church bells.  And just recently, the federal court entered an order declaring that the City’s efforts to criminally prosecute churches and pastors for ringing church bells was unconstitutional.  The Court also issued a permanent injunction prohibiting the City from ever using its noise ordinance to censor “sounds generated in the course of religious expression.”

This is a phenomenal win for religious freedom!  No pastor should ever fear being hauled off to jail for ringing church bells – especially since churches have been ringing bells for centuries.

While it is true that this is one case, it is indicative of a growing trend of marginalizing churches and pastors.  The Church as a whole has lost its uniqueness in the eyes of an increasingly secular society and is treated today the same as any other business.  But it is cases like this that should stand as reminders that Churches are unique and special and that our Constitution protects the right of churches to minister and speak freely.

ADF continues to fight to protect the right of the Church to speak and minister freely.  Go to our website and sign up for more information about the Church Project.

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On March 16, 2010, the Ninth Circuit held courts have no jurisdiction to tell churches how much they should be paying their ministers. Courts have long held that the First Amendment creates a ministerial exception for churches. The exception recognizes that government has no business interfering with the relationship between a church and its pastors – whether that be determining whom to hire, the terms of employment, or when they should be fired.
A candidate for the priesthood, Jesus Alcazar, argued this principle shouldn’t apply to him because he wasn’t a priest yet, but was still in training. He reasoned that his job duties not only included assisting with mass, but also janitorial responsibilities at the church.

But the Ninth Circuit correctly rejected this argument in Alcazar v. Corporation of the Archbishop of Seattle, holding a church can require its candidates for the priesthood to spend a year cleaning sinks if it wants to. Only a church can determine whether a seemingly secular activity will be a beneficial part of helping a pastor minister. When government officials entangle themselves in that determination, they violate churchs’ Constitutional right to freedom of religion.

On April 15, United States District Court Judge Barbara Crabb, for the Western District of Wisconsin, struck down the National Day of Prayer statute, 36 U.S.C. § 119, claiming that it violated the Establishment Clause. 

Did this statute require people to join a church?  Did it force people to pay tithe to the Southern Baptist Convention?  No.  This statute did not even force people to sing all four stanzas of Amazing Grace. 

So how is it that this statute was found to violate our First Amendment’s prohibition against the establishment of a national religion?  Here is the exact wording of the statute:

The President shall issue each year a proclamation designating the first Thursday in May as a National Day of Prayer on which the people of the United States may turn to God in prayer and meditation at churches, in groups, and as individuals.

All that this statute does is set aside a day each year for those that want to, to gather in prayer.  This is hardly the religious persecution our founding fathers faced when they fled England.  No one is forced to pray.  No one will be required to attend church or take communion in order to be a citizen. 

This statute is simply a reflection of our history and our heritage.  It is fast becoming a national secret, but America has a religious heritage.  We have a religious history.  As Supreme Court Justice William Douglas said, “We are a religious people whose institutions presuppose a Supreme Being.”

From George Washington to today, Presidents have issued proclamations asking for national prayer.  In 1789, both the House and the Senate passed resolutions asking President Washington to issue an exhortation to the nation to pray and be thankful.   This tradition has been carried on by the many different presidents, has sustained us through national crises, and has continued till today.

But our nation’s history was of little concern here.  The opinion stated, ““[I]f history is controlling, it would require the Supreme Court to overrule much of its establishment clause jurisprudence of the last 50 years.”

Finally, we get a concession from a federal judge that the last fifty years of jurisprudence has been slightly off the mark from our nation’s history!  But in the end, the court struck down the statute because it was a promotion of religion in general.

Luckily for this nation, the court stayed its ruling until all appeals have been exhausted.  Most likely, the Supreme Court will have the last say on whether our history will be re-written.  And we at the Alliance Defense Fund will be employing every legal strategy to make sure our history, our heritage, is not so easily discarded.

Let President Obama know that the National Day of Prayer is important to you and to our country.  Encourage him to instruct the Justice Department to appeal this decision.

Sign the petition for President Obama

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