Town Tells Church How to Use Its Building
In a building where people have been gathering for nearly 60 years, the Township of Windsor Michigan told a church it cannot host weddings and religious events.
After performing nonstructural renovations on a recently vacated church building, The Tarrington Church began to host worship services, Bible studies, and weddings, among other religious activities.
But the town sent a cease-and-desist letter and issued $4,500 in fines for three weddings held on the property. Additionally, the Township’s fire marshal refuses to issue a certificate of occupancy for the building after previously allowing it to hold up to 400 people. The Township has also used its zoning laws to limit the Church’s activities to Sunday morning services with no more than 60 people and only fourt to six community events per year that must conclude by 9:00 pm.
Other churches and secular event facilities are not bound by the same restrictions. For over two years, the church has attempted to work with officials to satisfy the shifting demands. But in May, the Township amped up efforts to prevent religious activity at the property.
“The First Amendment and federal law protect the right of churches to operate freely from unreasonable and intrusive government interference,” said Ryan Gardner, Senior Counsel at First Liberty.
First Liberty filed a federal lawsuit making clear that the Township’s discrimination against the church is illegal and cannot continue.
U.S. Supreme Court Urged to Take
Firefighters’ Religious Liberty Case
We received a tremendous outpouring of support in our case involving the a group of Washington state firefighters. Twenty-two states and a diverse coalition of organizations filed friend-of-the-court briefs urging the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the case.
Eight Snohomish firefighters asked for a religious exemption from their employer’s vaccine mandate. For that, they were punished and ordered to go home without pay for months. They’re still fighting in court, waiting to be made whole after the discrimination they faced.
First Liberty is asking the Supreme Court to right the wrongs done to our clients and to clarify that employers cannot deny religious accommodations for trivial reasons. This case could have broad impact for millions of Americans in the workplace, especially those singled out and unlawfully punished because of their religious beliefs on vaccine mandates.
“We are hopeful the Supreme Court will take this case,” said First Liberty Senior Counsel Stephanie Taub. The goal is to “protect the right of every American to live out their faith in the workplace without fear of reprisal.”
Briefs in support were filed by:
Your Support Helps Keep Teachers in the Classroom
What kind of impact does your support have? It can change someone’s life and save their career.
Our client, Eric Rivera, teaches first-grade in Nashville. Because of supporters like YOU, First Liberty was there to represent Eric when the school threatened to fire him. Why? Because he asked for a religious accommodation not to teach curriculum that violated his beliefs.
Eric won. The school granted his request and established a policy to accommodate all teachers of faith. Plus, 300 charter schools across the country also changed their accommodation policies.
That’s the life-changing impact of your generosity.
Another teacher is still fighting for her career: Marisol Arroyo-Castro. The school district removed her from her classroom, because she had a small crucifix in her personal work area.
We’re fighting her case in federal court. The school district isn’t backing down, even though they’re clearly breaking the law by discriminating against Marisol.
Your gift today can help restore Marisol’s religious freedom.
Will you help us get her back in the classroom?
P.S. | When you give by June 30, your gift will have a multiplied impact thanks to our Fiscal Year End $250,000 Challenge Grant!
Your donation can help position First Liberty to begin the new fiscal year ready to defend people of faith wherever their freedoms are threatened.
Leading The Conversation | First Liberty in the News
Two Keys to American Legitimacy – Center for Religion, Culture & Democracy Fellow Kevin Vallier on Civitas Institute
American Principle, Memory, And Home – Center for Religion, Culture & Democracy Senior Fellow Wilfred M. McClay on Civitas Institute
Can We Moderate A Politicized Church Without Politics – Center for Religion, Culture & Democracy Director of Education and Engagement Stephen O. Presley on Acton Institute
Video | Kuyper, Calling, and the Common Good – Center for Religion, Culture & Democracy Executive Director Jordan J. Ballor on J29 Coalition
Let Freedom Ring: The Liberty Bell’s Ode to Freedom
by Erin Reynolds, First Liberty Intern
Americans are celebrating the 250th birthday of the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave. The story of The Liberty Bell rings as a reminder of the principles that shaped this great nation.
Originally called the State House Bell, it was dedicated to celebrating the 50th anniversary of Pennsylvania Governor William Penn’s 1701 Charter of Privileges laying out the framework of government.
The document highlights the essential nature of religious freedom: “No people can be truly happy, though under the greatest Enjoyment of Civil Liberties, if abridged of the Freedom of their Consciences, as to their Religious Profession and Worship.”
Many people were fleeing to America in search of the freedom to worship without government intervention or oppression, as they had experienced under the Church of England. They knew firsthand that religious liberty was essential to a free society.
The Liberty Bell was crafted to remember the Judeo-Christian principles that influenced our nation’s founding. Inscribed around the top is Leviticus 25:10 “Proclaim LIBERTY throughout all the Land unto all the inhabitants thereof.”
In the year of Jubilee, indentured servants were set free, debts were forgiven, and land was returned to its original owners.
The significance of the bell’s inscription went beyond the local politics of the time. It represented the people’s duty to uphold liberty, no matter the cost. Fueled by their faith, the Patriots of early Pennsylvania did exactly that.
It earned the name “Liberty Bell” by becoming a symbol for abolitionists. They rallied behind the message that freedom was for all Americans.
William Lloyd Garrison led this movement by first publishing the name “Liberty Bell” in The Liberator. His newspaper unified people under the banner of liberty and inspired them to make a difference.
After the Civil War, The Liberty Bell traveled throughout the country as a tangible symbol of the people’s desire to reunite. A replica was used in the fight for women’s right to vote. This Justice Bell remained silent until Sept. 25, 1920, when it was rung for the first time to celebrate the enactment of the 19th Amendment.
As America approaches her 250th birthday, may the Liberty Bell continue to ring and turn us to rededicate our lives to God and the freedoms that our Founding Fathers fought to secure.
Editors’ Picks | Stories Around the Nation
Cities Church Attorneys Slam Prosecutor’s Decision Not to Charge Invaders: The Law Will Bend’ – Daily Signal
AI Stumbles on Questions of Faith – Axios
These States are Leading on Restoring Religious Freedom – City Journal
How Americans Feel About Religion’s Influence in Government and Public Life – Pew Research Center
The Story of Churchill’s Great Speech Before Congress – Daily Signal
