Colorado Gov. Jared Polis is pictured in a still from a video on the governor\u2019s office Spanish-language account. (@GovofCoEspanol \/ X screen shot)<\/p>\n
This article originally appeared on WND.com<\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n Guest by post by Bob Unruh<\/em><\/p>\n Newest ruling addresses exclusion of Catholic preschools from program<\/strong><\/p>\n For at least the third time, the state of Colorado\u2019s anti-Christian agenda has been cited \u2013 and condemned \u2013 by the federal courts.<\/p>\n The latest ruling said the state broke the law by excluding Catholic preschools from a universal preschool program \u2013 solely because those schools consider religious affiliate in making enrollment decisions.<\/p>\n It is the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty that explained a federal court ruling cites the state\u2019s illegal exclusion of those preschools from a program that funds 15 hours per week of free preschool to more than 40,000 families.<\/p>\n During its first year, it benefited families with children in private, public and faith-based preschools.<\/p>\n But leftist activists inside the state\u2019s bureaucracy refused to authorize benefits to families who sent their children to St. Mary\u2019s and St. Bernadette\u2019s Catholic preschools because those institutions ask families to share their Catholic beliefs.<\/p>\n The court found, in its 101-page opinion, that the state\u2019s discrimination \u201ccreated an unworkable scheme that breaches the appropriate limits on state power.\u201d<\/p>\n The court found the state had \u201cno compelling interest\u201d in its discriminatory policy.<\/p>\n \u201cLast year, a different federal judge in Denver also issued a ruling against the state, in a case brought by a separate religious preschool raising similar claims,\u201d Becket reported.<\/p>\n \u201cOf course a Catholic school shouldn\u2019t be punished for caring about its students\u2019 religion,\u201d explained Nick Reaves, a Becket lawyer. \u201cColorado richly deserves this injunction, as it did the earlier one.\u201d<\/p>\n The schools explained the state\u2019s discrimination violated the Free Exercise, Free Speech and Establishment clauses of the First Amendment.<\/p>\n Integral to the state\u2019s agenda is that it demands schools incorporate sexual orientation and gender identity ideologies into their programs. The state has plunged headfirst into that ideology since the election of homosexual Gov. Jared Polis.<\/p>\n The judge said, \u201cThe department has allowed faith-based providers to deny children and families equal opportunity based on their religious affiliation, or lack thereof, and has cited no compelling interest for permitting that discrimination while denying plaintiffs\u2019 request for a related exemption. On that narrow basis, I conclude defendants have violated plaintiffs\u2019 free-exercise rights and that judgment in favor of plaintiffs is warranted. I consequently grant Plaintiffs relief in the form of a limited permanent injunction, declaratory judgment, and nominal damages.\u201d<\/p>\n It ruled, \u201cThe court immediately and permanently enjoins defendants Lisa Roy and Dawn Odean, acting in their official capacities on behalf of the Colorado Department of Early Childhood, from requiring, as a condition for participation in the Colorado Universal Preschool Program, that the preschools operated by plaintiffs St. Mary Catholic Parish in Littleton and St. Bernadette Catholic Parish in Lakewood agreed to provide or provide eligible children an equal opportunity to enroll and receive preschool services regardless of religious affiliation for as long as defendants allow exceptions from the religious affiliation aspect of the equal-opportunity requirement set out in [state law] and in the Colkorado Universial Preschool Program Service Agreement.<\/p>\n The defendants were ordered to pay $1 nominal damages.<\/p>\n The total hasn\u2019t been announced, but Colorado taxpayers likely won\u2019t get off so easily in the attacks on Christianity earlier, under the administration of Polis.<\/p>\n It recently lost the 303 Creative case at the U.S. Supreme Court.<\/p>\n There, state officials demanded that a Christian web designer follow the state\u2019s anti-Christian \u201cnon-discrimination\u201d mandate and promote events that violated the web designer\u2019s faith.<\/p>\n A judge recently ruled that the state \u2013 the taxpayers \u2013 must pay the costs and fees for the plaintiff in that caser.<\/p>\n Such cases, by the time they are all the way through the high court, can accumulate tens, or even hundreds, of thousands of dollars in lawyers\u2019 time and costs.<\/p>\n The leftist state\u2019s failed attack was on Lorie Smith and her 303 Creative company, through which she intended to create websites for couples being married.<\/p>\n However, the state demanded that should she begin that service, she also must provide the same services to same-sex duos, in violation of her Christian faith.<\/p>\n She sued for the First Amendment violation demanded by the state, and won.<\/p>\n The state earlier lost a similar battle with Jack Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop, who challenged the state\u2019s \u201cnon-discrimination\u201d plan that also would require him to promote ideologies that violate his Christian faith.<\/p>\n In that case, the Supreme Court specifically cited Colorado\u2019s \u201chostility\u201d to Christianity under Polis.<\/p>\n Copyright 2024 WND News Center<\/a><\/p>\n The post State Scolded AGAIN for Violating Rights of Christians<\/a> appeared first on The Gateway Pundit<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Colorado Gov. Jared Polis is pictured in a still from a video on the governor\u2019s office Spanish-language account.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30272","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n