Attempts to "crack down" on church services, including drive-in events, during Easter week
One of the stories that has emerged during the Coronavirus crisis has to do with religious freedom and the balancing of this First Amendment freedom with public health. Some states regard churches as being "essential" during this time, others do not. There are some who question why it's OK for liquor stores and abortion clinics to be open during the crisis while churches are closed. And, some have questioned why people can go to some retail stores and mix with dozens or even hundreds of people but are not allowed to go to church, especially if social distancing is used.
But, we have to keep in mind we are in a public health crisis, so there are rules and regulations that have, well, evolved. Unfortunately, there have been some blatant violations of religious freedom that have been occurring.
Take, for instance, a situation in Greenville, Mississippi, where law enforcement officials showed up at a "drive-in" church service and began to fine people $500. According to ToddStarnes.com, last Thursday...
As many as 20 police officers showed up at the King James Bible Baptist Church in Greenville, Mississippi threatening to issue citations to the pastor as well as church members.
It is the second day in a row that the city’s police department has been used to crack down on “drive-in” church services.ToddStarnes.com reported on the state's governor's response:
On Wednesday, nearly two dozen people attending a “drive-in” prayer service at Temple Baptist Church were slapped with $500 fines.
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves issued a warning to local elected leaders who are cracking down on religious liberty.
“If you send police after worshippers trying to social distance, you are going to have Mississippians revolt,” the governor wrote on Twitter.Starnes noted: "Temple Baptist Church and King James Bible Baptist Church held 'drive-in' services that appeared to be in line with state-mandated social distancing guidelines." Apparently, the city added its own rules limiting church activity.
Alliance Defending Freedom has now become involved in the situation there.
The governor of Virginia, who has been under fire for some time over his statements indicating a lack of the respect for the right to life for abortion survivors certainly seems to have his priorities out of line - strengthening the so-called right to abortion while not protecting religious freedom.
Live Action News reported that:
Meanwhile, the Liberty Counsel website, there is this report:
WRIC Television reported on a resident of the state who attempted to block the governor's executive action against gatherings of over 10 people:
It is now becoming more uselessly complex to keep up with the legal action being taken against Jack Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop in Colorado. He won a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 2018 involving his declining to provide a cake celebrating gay marriage; the high court ruled that the Colorado Civil Rights Commission had exercised hostility toward the baker.
The Alliance Defending Freeedom website reports that in 2017, while the original lawsuit was still being litigated, an attorney filed a complaint with the Commission against Phillips over his denial for a cake celebrating a gender transition. ADF states: "The commission filed charges against Phillips but abandoned the claim in the wake of more evidence of the state’s hostility toward religious freedom—hostility that the U.S. Supreme Court had first condemned in a separate lawsuit that began years earlier but that Phillips won in 2018. Instead of appealing the commission’s decision to drop its action on the 2017 complaint, the attorney filed a new lawsuit in state court that seeks monetary damages of more than $100,000 against Phillips in addition to legal fees."
ADF Senior Vice President of U.S. Legal Division Kristen Waggoner, who represented Phillips in arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court, stated, “It’s time to move on and leave Jack alone. This new lawsuit is nothing more than an activist’s attempt to harass and ruin Jack because he won’t create custom cakes that express messages or celebrate events in conflict with his conscience..." Arguments were made before a state court this past Thursday.
And, in Louisville, Kentucky, the mayor there decided to clamp down on these "drive-in" services. Mayor Greg Fischer, according to WDRB Television, "said he couldn't allow 'hundreds of thousands' of people to drive around town this weekend in observance of Easter festivities when they need to be home riding out the pandemic." The story says that On Fire Christian Church "...sought to 'block (Fischer's) prohibition on churches holding drive-in services during the COVID-19 pandemic,' according to the First Liberty Institute, which filed the lawsuit on behalf of the church."
On Saturday, a Federal judge agreed with the church; the television station reported that Judge Justin Walker granted a temporary restraining order allowing it to hold "drive-in" services. The article states:
In his ruling, Walker blasted the mayor's decision to prohibit drive-in church services as "beyond all reason" and akin to what one might find only in a dystopian novel. Fischer, however, said that in a global pandemic, he is simply trying to save lives.The station also reported:
"In this case, Louisville is violating the Free Exercise Clause 'beyond all question,'" he wrote. "Here, Louisville has targeted religious worship by prohibiting drive-in church services, while not prohibiting a multitude of other non-religious drive-ins and drive-throughs — including, for example, drive-through liquor stores."And, U.S. Senate Majority Leader tweeted out his support:
"Grateful for this strong, eloquent ruling defending Kentuckians' religious liberty from Judge Justin Walker ... Of course church parking lots cannot be singled out with unfair standards that differ from other establishments," he wrote. McConnell, who attended Walker's swearing-in ceremony in March, recently sent a letter to Fischer urging him to permit church services that adhere to CDC guidelines.According to the Lexington Herald-Ledger, the governor of Kentucky seems to be OK with drive-in services. So is the state's attorney general. However, Gov. Andy Beshear has decided to place church attendees under what amounts to house arrest - quarantine for 14 days if their license plate numbers are identified by law enforcement. FoxNews.com reports:
Under the new rules, people seen taking part in in-person events will have their license plate numbers recorded by authorities, who will provide the information to local health departments, Beshear said. Health officials will contact each participant and require them to go into quarantine for 14 days.
The governor also warned that those attending drive-in services must stay in their cars, park six feet away from their neighbor and not pass items between vehicles.Virginia governor signs bill that repeals previous abortion restrictions
The governor of Virginia, who has been under fire for some time over his statements indicating a lack of the respect for the right to life for abortion survivors certainly seems to have his priorities out of line - strengthening the so-called right to abortion while not protecting religious freedom.
Live Action News reported that:
Virginia Governor Ralph Northam signed two bills into law today, which he referred to as “The Reproductive Health Protection Act.” Together, the two bills, SB 733 and HB 980, repeal Virginia’s laws requiring a 24-hour waiting period and an ultrasound before any abortion, and overturn multiple other regulations and safety standards meant to keep women safe.
As previously noted by Live Action News, the Act “will do away with common-sense requirements, such as ambulatory surgical center standards for abortion facilities, a 24-hour waiting period, delivery of informed consent materials, and a transabdominal ultrasound before an abortion. The bill would also non-physicians such as physician’s assistants, nurse practitioners, and certified-nurse midwives, to commit abortions.”Live Action News stated that, "Governor Northam’s so-called Reproductive Health Protection Act has nothing to do with health or keeping women safe. It’s simply another step from a pro-abortion governor seeking to make abortion as widespread as possible in Virginia."
Meanwhile, the Liberty Counsel website, there is this report:
Police served a summons to the pastor of Lighthouse Fellowship in Chincoteague Island for holding a church service for 16 people spaced far apart in a sanctuary that seats 293.The site quotes Mat Staver of the organization, who is heard on Freedom's Call on Faith Radio; he stated: "We need to balance the First Amendment with protecting the health and welfare of people. Using an arbitrary number of 10 people for every church is not the answer.”
The charge is violating Virginia Governor Northam’s COVID Order 55 with a penalty up to a year in jail and/or a $2,500 fine. Liberty Counsel is representing Pastor Kevin Wilson and Lighthouse Fellowship Church.
WRIC Television reported on a resident of the state who attempted to block the governor's executive action against gatherings of over 10 people:
A man from southwest Virginia hoping to have churches reopen on Easter filed a lawsuit against Gov. Ralph Northam on Monday claiming the governor’s executive orders limiting gatherings of more than 10 people has had “a chilling effect” on his right to religious freedom. On Thursday, a judge denied the man’s temporary injunction to block Northam’s orders.
The suit, filed by Larry Hughes in Russell County, argues Northam’s order violates the Virginia Constitution’s guarantee of the enjoyment of life and liberty. Hughes’ suit also claims Executive Order 55 violates the constitution’s guarantee that people are the source of power in the commonwealth, that laws may not be suspended without the people’s consent and the guarantee of the the free exercise of religion.Jack Phillips back in court
It is now becoming more uselessly complex to keep up with the legal action being taken against Jack Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop in Colorado. He won a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 2018 involving his declining to provide a cake celebrating gay marriage; the high court ruled that the Colorado Civil Rights Commission had exercised hostility toward the baker.
The Alliance Defending Freeedom website reports that in 2017, while the original lawsuit was still being litigated, an attorney filed a complaint with the Commission against Phillips over his denial for a cake celebrating a gender transition. ADF states: "The commission filed charges against Phillips but abandoned the claim in the wake of more evidence of the state’s hostility toward religious freedom—hostility that the U.S. Supreme Court had first condemned in a separate lawsuit that began years earlier but that Phillips won in 2018. Instead of appealing the commission’s decision to drop its action on the 2017 complaint, the attorney filed a new lawsuit in state court that seeks monetary damages of more than $100,000 against Phillips in addition to legal fees."
ADF Senior Vice President of U.S. Legal Division Kristen Waggoner, who represented Phillips in arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court, stated, “It’s time to move on and leave Jack alone. This new lawsuit is nothing more than an activist’s attempt to harass and ruin Jack because he won’t create custom cakes that express messages or celebrate events in conflict with his conscience..." Arguments were made before a state court this past Thursday.
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