The 3 - April 14, 2024

This week's edition of The 3, featuring three stories of relevance to the Christian community, spotlights a new State Department proposal that could adversely affect Christian relief organizations in their hiring decisions. Also, a sports organization representing smaller colleges has announced that it will not allow men to compete in women's sports.  Plus, the Arizona Supreme Court had upheld a pro-life law in the state dating back to the 19th Century that had been challenged.

New State Department proposed policy could hamper work of relief groups

The U.S. State Department, according to an article appearing at Ministry Watch, has issued a proposal that "...expressly states that recipients and subrecipients receiving Department-funded foreign assistance funds must not discriminate on specified bases against end users of supplies or services (also referred to in this rule as beneficiaries and potential beneficiaries) or in certain employment decisions.”

Christian organizations including Samaritan's Purse and Christian Legal Society have "filed an official comment" to the State Department.  Ministry Watch stated, "The Christian ministries agree that they should not discriminate against beneficiaries, but have serious 'concerns' about the rules governing employment decisions."

The article quotes from Franklin Graham, President of Samaritan’s Purse, who said, "These proposed State Department regulations could be used to force faith-based organizations like Samaritan’s Purse to hire staff who disagree with our core biblical beliefs about God’s design for marriage, sexuality, and gender in order to be eligible for government grants.” He added, “Samaritan’s Purse is a Christian organization and we will not compromise on the fundamental principle of hiring like-minded Christians who share our calling, our stand on the authority of God’s Word, and our statement of faith..."  

The Ministry Watch story noted: "Faith-based ministries play a key role in the foreign assistance work of the United States. Religious groups make up 50 of the largest foreign assistance grant recipients and received $613 million in funding in Fiscal Year 2023."  The article reported:

Christian Legal Society shared an email asking supporters to sign an open letter to the State Department opposing the regulatory changes.

It reads in part, “I strongly oppose the U.S. State Department’s consideration of new regulations that will cut off grants and contracts to Christian—and all faith-based—relief organizations that require their employees to share their faith and their religious values.”

Large college sports organization announces new policy on males playing in female sports

Sarah Parshall Perry of the Heritage Foundation tweeted it out, saying:

@NAIA, a small colleges association representing 239 schools-bans male athletes from women's sports competitions in a unanimous vote. Thank you for standing with female athletes & prioritizing their safety & equal opportunity. 

Yo, @NCAA--your move. #SaveWomensSports

FoxNews.com reported:

The NAIA said its decision was rooted in "fair and safe competition for all student-athletes" and that "Title IX ensures there are separate and equal opportunities for female athletes." The organization said only athletes whose biological sex is female may participate in "NAIA-sponsored female sports." The policy goes into effect on Aug. 1.

This comes as the National Collegiate Athletic Association - the NCAA - is "currently facing a lawsuit from former athletes over its policy."  Fox summarized its policy this way:

The NCAA said it would follow the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee and each sport would follow the national governing body for each sport. If there was no national governing body, then each sport would abide by the international policy. The NCAA updated its transgender policy starting on Jan. 19, 2022, and the final implementation begins on Aug. 1.

Higher Ground Times explored the issue in an article following the NCAA Women's Basketball Championship Game, stating, regarding a response by South Carolina Head Coach Dawn Staley:

More eyeballs on women’s basketball have led to tougher questions for the sport’s top coaches. Ahead of Sunday’s national championship game against Iowa, OutKick’s Dan Zaksheske asked Staley if transgender athletes should be allowed to play with cisgender women.

“If you consider yourself a woman and you want to play sports … you should be able to play,” the two-time national champion said Saturday. “So now the barnstormer people are going to flood my timeline and be a distraction to me on one of the biggest days of our game, and I’m OK with that.”

Iowa coach Lisa Bluder dodged the same question on the hot-button issue during her media availability.

“I understand it’s a topic that people are interested in,” Bluder said. “But today my focus is on the game tomorrow … But I know it’s an important issue for another time.”

Current NCAA guidelines allow transgender athletes to participate in women’s sports as long as their testosterone level falls below prescribed limits that can vary from sport to sport.

Arizona's high court issues strong pro-life ruling

Dr. Eric Hazelrigg is an Arizona obstetrician and serves as Medical Director of Choices Pregnancy Center in Arizona. As Alliance Defending Freedom reported on its website, he "filed a petition last March asking the state’s high court to review an Arizona Court of Appeals ruling."

ADF noted:

The appellate court’s ruling misinterpreted state law, against its plain meaning, to allow abortion in circumstances where the Arizona Legislature prohibited it. It also enjoined officials from fully enforcing the state’s pro-life law to protect unborn children. The Arizona Supreme Court reversed this ruling, allowing the law to be enforced as written.

As Live Action News reported last Tuesday:

In a 4-2 decision on Tuesday, the Arizona Supreme Court upheld an 1864 law that protects most preborn children from abortion throughout pregnancy unless the life of the mother is in danger. There are no other exceptions.

According to NBC News, the Court said it will put its decision on hold for 14 days, and send the case back to a lower court to consider “additional constitutional challenges.” The law would make an induced abortion a felony punishable by two to five years in prison for anyone who commits one or helps a woman obtain one.

However, Attorney General Kris Mayes said that she will not enforce the law.

ADF Senior Counsel Jake Warner stated: "Arizona’s pro-life law has protected unborn children for over 100 years, and the people of Arizona, through their elected representatives, have repeatedly affirmed that law, including as recently as 2022. We celebrate the Arizona Supreme Court’s decision that allows the state’s pro-life law to again protect the lives of countless, innocent unborn children.”