Protecting Nonprofits From SCOTUS Marriage Ruling
The Supreme Court is considering a case that would hand down the definition of marriage nationwide. As U.S. Solicitor General Donald Verrilli told the court, the fact that some religious nonprofits will decide not to hire people due to their beliefs in same-sex marriage is “certainly going to be an issue.” In the possible fallout of the coming ruling, a Christian school could lose its nonprofit status if, say, it refused to hire an openly homosexual man. Rather than waiting for the Court’s decision, Sen. Mike Lee plans to introduce legislation that would protect religious nonprofits. “Discrimination by private parties against private parties — that’s one issue,” he said. “There is a different issue when the government is itself the discriminator. … That’s a problem and that’s what we’re trying to protect here.” The bill Lee would introduce is similar to the 2013 Marriage and Religious Freedom Act. While the courts have tended toward interpreting U.S. law broadly when it comes to religious liberty, the issue has become unnecessarily politicized in legislatures across the country. The First Amendment was drafted to ensure that diverse opinions were never driven from the public square. But that fundamental principle is at odds with the Left’s agenda. More…