by Jorge Gomez, Director of Content Strategy • 2 minutes
First Liberty is asking a full panel of judges on a federal appeals court to hear our case on behalf of Holy Trinity Ukrainian Catholic Church in Pennsylvania.
The case involves Collier Township, a local municipality that’s imposing unreasonable restrictions on the church and refuses to grant permits to construct a shrine.
A three-judge panel on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision that said the church would likely win, but denied our request to allow the church to move ahead with the project while the case is being heard.
We’re now asking for the case to be heard again by all the active judges, rather than just a 3-judge panel.
“No church should have to wait years for its religious liberty to be protected,” explains First Liberty Senior Counsel Ryan Gardner. “It’s little comfort to Holy Trinity when judges say it’s likely to win the case, but it has to wait months or years to enjoy the freedom the First Amendment guarantees. Such a holding is not only incorrect but also relegates the natural right to worship to a second-class status.”
Holy Trinity is part of a branch of the Catholic Church headquartered in Ukraine and worships according to traditions that arose millennia ago in Eastern Europe. Ukrainian Catholic refugees fled from communism in the 20th century, seeking to worship in peace according to their own customs and traditions. They found respite in Collier Township, and eventually the refugees acquired a 41-acre parcel of land which they transformed into a cemetery.
When the church was ready to construct a shrine on that property with related facilities for prayer and worship, their plans were thwarted when the Township refused most of the plans the church proposed. Then, when the Church attempted to build a scaled-back chapel instead of the shrine, the Township added unlawful restrictions such as limiting how long and when church bells could ring, for whom memorial services could be held, and the size and height of buildings.
Despite the restrictions imposed on the church, less than a mile up the road, the local carpenters union maintains a 19-acre campus that includes classrooms, conference rooms, offices, a cafeteria, an event space, and a meeting room with seating for 400 people.
What’s more, the township zoning code allows secular establishments such as amusement parks, ice rinks, fitness centers, and country clubs to operate in the same zoning district, while not allowing the same for houses of worship.
Like countless churches across America, Holy Trinity simply wants to live out its faith and use its facilities and property to better serve the needs of congregants and the community. But local officials have opted to single out the church and keep it from fulfilling its divinely inspired calling.
That’s not only wrong—it’s illegal. The First Amendment and federal law protect the right of churches to operate free from unreasonable and intrusive government interference. That includes a church’s right to use its facilities for religious purposes. Cities and government officials are also required by law to treat houses of worship fairly and equally to businesses or other religious organizations.
Houses of worship should not be subject to such discrimination. Holy Trinity is counting on your support. By winning for this church, you’re also going to help protect religious freedom for every American, including YOU. When one church wins, ALL Americans win.
Please give to First Liberty today.
