A Big Win for Christian Students and Schools

Authors: John Stonestreet | Shane Morris

The question constantly repeated by those who pushed to redefine marriage a decade ago was, “How will my gay marriage hurt you?” More recently, from those demanding full legal and social recognition for transgender identities, it has been, “How does me being my true self hurt you?” The answers to those questions have been clear for some time.  

LGBTQ dogma is not a “live and let live” vision of reality. It constantly demands that dissenters—especially the religious ones who are allegiant to the Creator, whom their ideas deny—be rooted out and punished. Christian business owners, public and private company employees, nonprofits, and even parents have felt the demand to comply and agree, or else ... 

Recently, a few cases have helped right some wrongs against religious freedom. The latest battle involves an attempt by activists to keep students from using federal assistance to attend religious schools. Thankfully, this case went the right way.  

In Hunter v. U.S. Department of Education, Alliance Defending Freedom successfully argued that “Title IX allows students to use federal financial aid at private religious schools that operate according to their beliefs,” specifically their beliefs on “gender and sexual morality.”  

Since 2021, Title IX has been interpreted to prohibit “discrimination” on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, with religious institutions receiving exemptions. ADF represented three Christian institutions—two universities and a seminary—that welcome students who receive government help with tuition but operate according to biblical convictions about sexuality. 

Activists argued that this violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment by involving the government in funding religion. In August, the historically liberal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected that argument. In its opinion, the Court determined that these schools were in line with,  

[A] continuous, century-long practice of government accommodations for religion that the Supreme Court and our court have repeatedly accepted as consistent with the Establishment Clause. … [Such religious exemptions] have withstood the critical scrutiny of time and political change.  

Commenting on the case, ADF Senior Counsel Chris Schandevel agreed:  

Federal law explicitly protects the freedom of religious schools to live out their deeply held convictions, and we’re pleased this legal victory protects Christian colleges’ fundamental rights. 

Again, this is no small matter, even for the non-religious. In fact, the reaffirmed exemption takes a great burden off the government. Now, the government need not police whether an institution toes the ever-changing ideological line on sex and gender. It further carves out room for Christians to continue practicing our faith by advancing educational alternatives, without being punished by those who think everyone should embrace LGBTQ orthodoxy, or else.  

Still, that we’re even having this discussion, again, about religious institutions being religious, should be noted. It would have shocked the men who wrote the First Amendment to learn that religious students would one day have to fight for equal treatment under the law because of so-called “sexual minorities.” And the consolation that this case went the right way is made smaller by the fact that we must keep going to court on these matters year after year. 

LGBTQ activists were never going to stop at “equality.” There are many who want unconditional surrender and the establishment of sexual identity as a kind of national religion. Thank God for His mercy, strong judges, and good allies.   

Christians will need to continue to make the case for religious freedom and demonstrate in our lives that religious Americans are the best citizens. The schools, colleges, hospitals, churches, sports leagues, and charities established by Christians benefit everyone, and are therefore indispensable pillars supporting a limited government. The ascendent cult of sexual orientation and gender identity offers none of these things. It only results in a bigger and more intrusive government less concerned with the common good than the goals of ideologues. 

Only by understanding our freedoms can we preserve them. Only by educating the next generation can we expect them to join the defense when the time comes. And it will.