The 3 - May 3, 2020

On this week's edition of The 3, with three stories of relevance to the Christian community, there is good news out of Kentucky, where a Federal appeals court has allowed a Louisville church to meet this weekend, despite restrictions that have been handed down by the state's governor.  Also, a Tennessee city has reversed its previous ban on drive-in worship services.  Plus, a Federal judge in California has directed individuals involved in exposing Planned Parenthood's abhorrent dealing in the body parts of aborted babies to pay stiff fines in excess of a million dollars.

Federal appeals court issues ruling favoring Kentucky church, state attorney general sides with congregation

A church in Kentucky that was visited by Kentucky state troopers handing out citations and quarantine demands received some court relief over the weekend, according to the website for Liberty Counsel, which is defending Maryville Baptist Church in Louisville.  According to the site:

Liberty Counsel won an emergency injunction from a unanimous three-judge panel on the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, prohibiting the enforcement of Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear’s March 19 and 25 COVID-19 orders against church services at Maryville Baptist Church and its pastor Dr. Jack Roberts. The rare Saturday injunction protects this church services this weekend.

This comes after a friend-of-the-court brief from the state's Attorney General, Daniel Cameron, who, according to the Liberty Counsel site, said:

“The freedom to practice one’s faith is a defining feature of American liberty… But in the wake of executive orders shutting down in-person worship services in Kentucky in response to the Covid-19 crisis, this guarantee is on shaky ground. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear has allowed certain secular activities to continue in Kentucky if social distancing guidelines are followed, but has refused the same treatment for religious entities. Pandemic or not, the Constitution prohibits the targeting of religious exercise for disfavored treatment.”

The Court made direct statements in its ruling, such as this one: “Orders prohibiting religious gatherings, enforced by police officers telling congregants they violated a criminal law and by officers taking down license plate numbers, amount to a significant burden on worship gatherings…The breadth of the ban on religious services, together with a haven for numerous secular exceptions, should give pause to anyone who prizes religious freedom.” The Court referred to the "soul-sustaining group services of faith organizations...," and wrote:

“Assuming all of the same precautions are taken, why is it safe to wait in a car for a liquor store to open but dangerous to wait in a car to hear morning prayers? Why can someone safely walk down a grocery store aisle but not a pew? And why can someone safely interact with a brave deliverywoman but not with a stoic minister? The Commonwealth has no good answers. While the law may take periodic naps during a pandemic, we will not let it sleep through one.”

Chattanooga reverses course, OK's drive-in services

The city of Chattanooga, Tennessee, is one governmental entity that has reversed course and avoided further court action by deciding to allow drive-in worship services within the city limits, according to the Alliance Defending Freedom, which had filed a Federal lawsuit against the city on behalf of the Metropolitan Tabernacle Church.  The ADF website reported that mayor Andrew Berke, on the Thursday before Easter, April 9...

...posted a message aimed at churches on the city website and on his official Facebook page regarding the order, stating that “drive-in services…even in their cars with the windows rolled up, for any length of time, will be considered a violation of our shelter-in-place directive.” That forced Metro Tab Church and other area churches to cancel drive-in Easter services and brought about the lawsuit. In the face of the suit, the city reversed its position and agreed to allow drive-in services, which Metro Tab Church and other congregations held for the past two Sundays without any threat of being singled out. Because of that, Metro Tab Church agreed to dismiss its lawsuit.

ADF Senior Counsel Ryan Tucker, director of the ADF Center for Christian Ministries, stated, in part: “We commend the city for changing its policies and respecting the constitutionally protected freedoms of area congregations, which can now participate in alternate versions of worship during this pandemic that are specifically designed to comply with all applicable health and safety recommendations.”

Pro-life journalists hit with big fines

The citizen journalism of the Center for Medical Progress, headed by David Daleiden, resulted in the exposure of the practices of Planned Parenthood in selling the body parts of aborted babies.  The organization was cited by Congress, but a Federal judge believes that the journalists, not the abortionists, are the wrongdoers.

The Christian Post reports that:

U.S. District Court Judge William Orrick of the Northern District of California released an order Wednesday against individuals connected to the Center for Medical Progress.

The judge's ruling was consistent with a jury's determination last year that the named individuals violated the Unfair Competition Law, "a claim brought by Planned Parenthood and the plaintiffs California Business & Professions Code," according to the website.

The Post reports that:

In addition to issuing an injunction banning those named from attending Planned Parenthood events, Orrick also found them liable for large sums of money.

This includes $1,259,370 in damages related to Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, plus other damages and attorneys’ fees.