Supreme Court to Decide if Religious Groups can Limit Membership/Leadership

This news item came out in The Chronicle of Higher Education in early December, but in the rush of the end of the semester, finals, and the approaching holidays, you may have missed it.

At issue is whether religious groups on campus can be denied recognition (i.e., money) if they place limitations on membership or qualifications for leadership. In this case, it deals with the issue of religious group restrictions on gays and lesbians.

Says one side: “It’s completely unreasonable—and unconstitutional—for a public university to disrupt the purposes of private student groups by forcing them to accept as members and officers those who oppose the very ideas they advocate.”

Says the other: “The Christian Legal Society is seeking a ruling that would treat religious groups differently than all other student groups by exempting them from nondiscrimination and open-membership policies.”

According to the Supreme Court’s website, this case is scheduled for arguments on Monday, April 19.

Let us know what you think in the comments section below.

The full article is available at http://tinyurl.com/yc49a2n