U.S. Supreme Court Hears Key Religious Freedom Case
The U.S. Supreme Court began hearings this week in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez (UC Hastings). The Christian Legal Society (CLS) is a campus organization consisting primarily of Christian law students. The chapter at UC Hastings asked for official recognition of their group in 2004. Groups officially recognized by the university are eligible for certain benefits, including student activity fee funding. University officials denied the request saying the group's Statement of Faith violated the university's non-discrimination policy.
CLS, like many campus groups, requires leaders and voting members to adhere to a membership statement -- in this case, a Statement of Faith that includes a prohibition on extramarital sex. At issue is the group's religious freedom rights and right of expressive association to limit its membership to those who adhere to the Statement of Faith. CLS also points out that the university recognizes other campus groups that have membership requirements limiting membership to similarly like-minded individuals.
The case has now reached the Supreme Court and the ruling will likely have profound implications on many campus religious organizations. The Alliance Defense Fund is actively involved in the case and has successfully defended the religious rights of other Christian student groups in cases elsewhere in the United States.
To read more about Christian Legal Society v. Martinez (UC Hastings), click HERE. To find out more about the Alliance Defense Fund's efforts to defend religious liberty on university campuses, click HERE. To read a Friend of the Court Brief from Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox in defense of the CLS position, click HERE. IFI contacted Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan a number of times asking her to sign onto this brief. We did not receive a response.
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Evil men don't understand the importance of justice,
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~Proverbs 28:5
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