Eastern Michigan University is being sued by grad student Julea Ward for dismissing her from the counseling program because she refused to counsel a homosexual about a relationship because of her religious convictions. The story is covered at www.mlive.com.
Here's an excerpt:
The suit was filed Thursday with the U.S. District Court in Detroit by the Alliance Defense Fund Center for Academic Freedom, a conservative public interest group focusing on religious freedom.
It alleges that EMU violated the civil rights of Julea Ward, a graduate student in school counseling, by dismissing her from the program because she would not affirm homosexual behavior in the context of counseling, as specified in university policy.
EMU's handbook for students in the counseling program sets out that they adhere to American Counseling Association standards, which require counselors to not engage in discrimination based on, among other things, sexual orientation.
When Ward was asked to counsel a client wishing to discuss a homosexual relationship, Ward objected and followed her supervisor's instructions by referring the client to another counselor, said Jeremy Tedesco, an Arizona-based attorney working on the case.
I know what some of you are thinking: "Good, discrimination is bad."
Sounds good - but isn't Ward also being discriminated against? She is. But no one cares because anything perceived as a slight against gays is considered blasphemy in this country, while denying rights to Christians okay.
Here's the problem: Homosexuality is a BEHAVOIR and not a racial characteristic. If someone has a religious issue with the gay lifestyle they should not be forced to participate in actions that support and/or endorse that behavior.
That's not to say doctors should be allowed to refuse care for gays because they don't like them or store owners can deny them access to their businesses because treating the sick or selling products to someone doesn't affirm anything.
The issue comes down to services that would promote the gay lifestyle. For example, if a gay person were to go to Ward for advice on their homosexual relationship, she should be allowed to not counsel that individual. Or, if a photographer does not want to take pictures of a gay wedding, he shouldn't be dragged into court. By they way, that is happening more and more.
Would an African American-owned construction company be expected to build a new meeting hall for the Klu Klux Klan? Of course not. The same goes for gays. A gay painter shouldn't be forced to provide services to the God Hates Fags Church. (Which by the way is not a true representation of Christianity.)
So why can't a counselor refer someone looking for advice on a homosexual relationship to another counselor?
As for me, I do NOT hate homosexuals but I do believe the behavior is a sin. I know a lot of pro-gay churches say that's not true, but the Bible clearly spells it out. The Bible also clearly states sex outside of marriage is a sin, so is taking God's name in vain and lying.
I don't hate people guilty of those sins either. I have been guilty of many sins in my life so I am not one to judge. That being said, I have to speak up when people are forced to accept the gay lifestyle. And if they don't, they are penalized. That is what is happening to Ward. What about her rights? Where's the ACLU? Why don't they go to bat for her? If a gay student had some gripe with the university, the ACLU would be all over school officials and suing everyone in sight.
If EMU had any guts, school officials would rescind Ward's dismissal and stick for her rights. But they won't. Colleges are supposed to be the place where ideas are exchanged and all students' viewpoints are - if not accepted - at least tolerated. However, only Liberal ideas are approved of and anyone who has a differing opinion is vilified.
EMU is a joke and I wouldn't send my kids to a school that tramples on religious rights so easily in the name of political correctness. School officials don't care because all they did was vanquish some "intloerant religious fanatic" in their eyes. It's sad.
Until next time, enjoy Michigan and practice some REAL tolerance.
March 5th, 2010 at 4:06 pm
If I get the product and I do not like it how shortly do i return it?
April 10th, 2009 at 1:58 pm
I figured I get the “Bible was used to justify slavery” argument. That is the biggest red herring used to downplay people’s religious convictions.
After all, “Why follow the Bible when it condones slavery?”
With all due respect, that is a ridiculous argument.
Yes, there have been people who misused the Bible to justify their actions but that doesn’t mean they are correct or people need to avoid the Bible because others were guilty of bastardizing it.
The Curse of Ham was made up by ignorant people. No where does the Bible state there is a curse on African Americans. To use that as an argument against the Bible is like making up a lie based on a true story in a history book and then saying that book should never be trusted.
There is nowhere in the Bible that justified the type of slavery perpetrated by Europe and America. Slavery during those times was very different. Especially in the New Testament when most slaves volunteered to offer their service to be cared for. The term was “bond servant,” meaning they chose to stay with their “masters.”
I never said homosexual behavior should be illegal. I simply stated people who do not accept that behavior should not be forced by law to participate in it. Just like an African American should not be forced to work for the Klu Klux Klan if he or she has a business.
True, many Christians use the Bible to their own ends but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad book.
The problem with the pro-gay movement is it forces Christians to go against their beliefs. There are lawsuits against churches that won’t perform ceremonies for gay couples. That is wrong.
The same can be said if an atheist DJ refuses to perform at a Christian wedding if he or she doesn’t want to based on the belief their religion is bunk to that person.
April 10th, 2009 at 1:07 pm
Don’t have a strong opinion on the EMU situation, but your suggestion that the Bible should be anybody’s guideline on these issues is rather interesting. After all, for centuries the Bible — and by extension, God, was used to justify slavery and racism — just as today some suggest it should be used to justify prejudice against gays.
Note this from Wikipiedia:
The historian Bernard Lewis notes that both the Old and the New Testaments recognize and accept the institution of slavery as allowable under certain circumstance (Leviticus 25:44-46; Exodus 21:7-11). The Bible was used, before and during the American Civil War, by both slaveholders and abolitionists to justify their views.
….
For centuries, the narrative of the “curse of Ham” has been continuously cited as the justification for black slavery. The story has repeatedly been interpreted as God’s condemnation of the black race as a result of their progenitor’s crime against family and honor against hope.
—————–
So, in the eyes of the Bible, it was ok to enslave blacks — and to hate gays. But we’ve decided as a civil society that racism cannot be condoned. No reason why, as a civil society, we should say that anti-gay sentiment similary should not be condoned by licensing bodies.
Again, no strong feeling on the issue. Just get a grin when people source the Bible and “God” on these matters. I’m sure in 1865 there were more than a few good Christians who said that the government was being “politically correct” and “liberal” and was trampling on their religious rights when it started trying to give people of color the same rights as whites.