The Rock, in Castle Rock, Colorado, is a church committed to demonstrating the Gospel. It contends that the out-growth of their sincerely held doctrinal beliefs should be reflected in how they care for hurting, needy people in the community. The church’s ministries also include food distribution, job training, financial assistance, and a variety of church-led efforts to move the displaced from a place of homelessness to a permanent solution that includes their own residence, a job, and a steady income.
Neither the Town of Castle Rock, nor Douglas County, CO, has an emergency, temporary shelter for individuals experiencing homelessness or who are otherwise suddenly unhoused. The church fills a critical need in the community for those who have no options. The church uses the trailer/RVs as a temporary solution and part of a holistic effort to get people back on their feet as quickly as possible.
But now the town is demanding the church stop providing temporary shelter to single moms and others suddenly displaced.
The Town of Castle Rock contends the temporary shelter ministry violates the city’s zoning ordinances and is calling for an end to their mercy ministry efforts. The actions the town has taken has created a substantial burden on the use of their property for religious exercise.
In addition to threatening the church’s shelter ministry, the town took action to prohibit the Red Cross’s partnership with the church, thereby ending the use of the church’s property to provide temporary shelter to needy individuals in the community. The church had previously been used by the Red Cross in times of severe blizzards to temporarily house the displaced.
“What the world needs now is more compassion, more help for the underserved, and less harassment from the government toward churches that are trying to fulfill their mission,” said First Liberty Senior Counsel Jeremy Dys. “Churches that take action to care for the homeless should be encouraged and affirmed, not opposed and retaliated against.”
In May, First Liberty filed a federal lawsuit and a motion for preliminary injunction against the town of Castle Rock, Colorado for its actions to shut down the on-site temporary and emergency shelter ministry.
In the motion, attorneys state, “The Town’s shutting down of The Rock Church’s On-Site Temporary Shelter Ministry and Red Cross Partnership is not only deeply cruel, but it also violates The Rock Church’s fundamental free-exercise rights, as protected by the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (“RLUIPA”).
News Release
For Immediate Release: 5.14.24
Contact: John Manning, media@firstliberty.org
Direct: 972-941-4453
Colorado Church Sues Town for Halting, Retaliating Against its Temporary, Emergency Shelter Ministry
From cooperation to aggressive harassment, Castle Rock, CO attacks the church’s humanitarian aid for desperate people in the community.
Castle Rock, CO—Attorneys with First Liberty Institute today filed a federal lawsuit and a motion for preliminary injunction against the town of Castle Rock, Colorado after officials there sought to shut down the on-site temporary and emergency shelter ministry of “The Rock,” a church in the town. The town has not only insisted the church end its efforts to offer temporary and emergency shelter for helpless and suddenly homeless people, it has also interfered with its ability to serve as a Red Cross emergency shelter and retaliated against the church by threatening the business license of a coffee service located in the church.
You can read the complaint here and the motion for preliminary injunction here.
“Churches that take action to care for the homeless should be encouraged and affirmed, not opposed and retaliated against,” said First Liberty Senior Counsel Jeremy Dys. “It’s not enough for the town to try to stop this church from using its property to provide temporary shelter to displaced single moms and their children. The town is also trying to prevent the church from partnering with the Red Cross in times of emergency.”
According to Pastor Mike Polhemus, “Our mission is to transform society by loving others as Christ loved us. This includes providing such a level of outreach and aid to the surrounding community that, if we ever close our doors, the entire community would feel our church’s absence. It’s shocking that the town is preventing us from providing temporary shelter and wrap-around assistance to people who are in their greatest need, thus helping to reduce homelessness in our community.”
Other than The Rock’s location, the Town of Castle Rock, Colorado, has no emergency or temporary shelters within town limits for individuals suddenly without a safe home. Along with providing food, clothes, shoes, financial assistance, and small kitchen items, The Rock works with individuals displaced due to life circumstances to provide a temporary place of shelter in one trailer and one RV parked on the back of the church’s property – more than 400 feet from any resident property. The church uses the trailer/RVs as a temporary solution and part of a holistic effort to get people back on their feet as quickly as possible. It also partnered with the Red Cross to use its main building to provide emergency shelter during severe winter storms or other sudden emergencies. But now the town is demanding the church stop providing temporary shelter to single moms and others suddenly displaced.
In the motion, attorneys state, “No history or tradition justifies the Town’s intrusion into the Church’s property to dictate which portions of the Church’s property may be used for religious purposes or how the church may go about accomplishing its religious mission. More generally, the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, made applicable to the States through the Fourteenth Amendment, prohibits governmental hostility to religion.”
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About First Liberty Institute
First Liberty Institute is a non-profit public interest law firm and the largest legal organization in the nation dedicated exclusively to defending religious freedom for all Americans.
To arrange an interview, contact John Manning at media@firstliberty.org or by calling 972-941-4453.
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