We often hear bad things about the cases handed down by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which sits in various places on the west coast – primarily San Francisco.  All too often, this Court’s opinions are contrary to religious freedom, and protecting the family and life.  But a panel led by Judge O’Scannlain ruled on August 23, 2010 that World Vision is a religious organization that has the right to hire only those people who agree with its religious beliefs.  You can view a list of the factors courts may consider when making this determination here.  The Ninth Circuit’s opinion in Spence v. World Vision generally tracks these – though it does point out concerns about some of them as indicated below.

This decision brings the Ninth Circuit in line with several others such as the Eleventh in Atlanta and the Third in Philadelphia.  What’s remarkable is the court went even further than its sister circuits when making this ruling.  For instance, in holding that World Vision falls under the Title VII’s exemption for religious organizations, the court said that the First Amendment would require such an exemption, even if Title VII didn’t provide for it.  It’s encouraging to know that even if Congress attempts to narrow the law to only apply to churches, para-church ministries like World Vision are still protected by the Constitution.

The Ninth Circuit also did a great job of explaining why it’s not the place of courts to determine what is and is not a religious activity.  The plaintiffs in the matter – former employees who were fired for not believing in the divinity of Christ – argued that World Vision’s ministries such as feeding the hungry aren’t a religious activity.  (Maybe they thought that if He’s not God, why read his teachings?  See Matthew 25:31-46).  This argument was roundly and properly rejected by the Court, which said that deciding which activities of a religious organization actually further its mission would impermissibly entangle judges in religious matters.

We should be thankful that we still have judges on the bench who understand religious freedom and the importance of religious organizations to our society – even in the Ninth Circuit.

Please leave a comment below to share your thoughts or follow us on Facebook to join the conversation. http://www.facebook.com/SpeakUpChurch