Zoned Out

By 

Jay Sekulow

|
June 25, 2011

4 min read

ACLJ

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Over the past few days, I have been reviewing two major cases that the ACLJ is litigating concerning churches and religious institutions and the laws of zoning.  We are preparing for court proceedings in a major case out of northern Virginia.  McLean Bible Church, led by its dynamic pastor, Lon Solomon, has as part of its church mission to impact secular Washington, D.C. with the message of Jesus Christ!  Its central ministry is the continuous imparting of the Scriptures to the people of God so that they may know God and serve Him in worship and ministry.  Like any other house of worship, an integral part of the churchs ministry is the study of the writings and beliefs sacred to its faith.  Back in 1999, the church received permission to build its new campus and facilities.  Since then, the church has had phenomenal growth and its clear that the Lord is blessing their efforts in reaching the Washington, DC area.  The zoning approved by the County of Fairfax provided that church facilities shall only be made available for use by groups or activities which are sponsored by the church and consistent with its ministry objectives.  In order to fulfill its ministry objectives, McLean Bible Church offers advanced classes in theology and Christian ministry.  These classes are designed to impart teachings of the Scriptures and theology from a biblical perspective and are integral to the churchs overall mission of reaching Washington, DC for the cause of the Gospel.  The zoning authorities have now determined that the teaching of these classes does not fit within the churchs use permit.  In other words, the government has decided that these classes are not consistent with the churchs ministry objectives. 

 

The idea that government agencies could come in and tell a church that a particular course or courses of study in theology are not consistent with the schools ministry or mission is inappropriate.  Several years back, Congress passed a specific piece of legislation known as RLUIPA (The Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act).  This legislation was designed to protect churches from these kinds of arbitrary zoning decisions which negatively impact churches ability to fulfill their mission.  Whats interesting is that other religious institutions and schools offer similar classes and have not run afoul of the county zoning laws.  We have filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging the City of Fairfax.  It is anticipated that we will be in court in the middle of September for the initial phases of litigation in this case.  I am personally arguing the various motions.  It is our view that this case may well be a test case that ends up at the Supreme Court of the United States. 

 

In Nashville, TN, our Senior Counsel Larry Crain is handling a similar case for another nonprofit Christian ministry.  This particular organization provides charitable assistance in the form of food, clothing, shelter, transportation and recovery counseling to the homeless and needy.  Part of what they do is run a store similar to Goodwill.  They met all of the zoning requirements for the City of Millersville in Tennessee.  However, the city refused to allow the plaintiff to occupy the leased premises even though there are other similar stores operating in the community.  The city argued that there is a pending city ordinance which will effectively ban the establishment of any and all new religious or other nonprofit property uses within the city limits of Millersville.  This act of discrimination is also unconstitutional under RLUIPA.  Larry has already filed a federal lawsuit and has received a preliminary injunction in the case.  I will be traveling to Nashville to meet with Larry to discuss the impact of this case as well as the McLean Bible Church case. 

 

What we are beginning to see develop is attempts by cities and towns to remove the Christian influences of their communities through zoning laws.  Churches and other Christian ministries should not have the impact of their ministry curtailed by the misuse of zoning laws by city officials.  This is precisely why we have gone to court now in these two new federal cases.  Churches should not be zoned out simply because someone in the zoning office doesnt like their mission or ministry purpose.  We will keep you posted as these cases progress.