A farmer in Michigan (MI) has won a
court battle against the city of East Lansing, MI which had denied him the right
to sell his vegetables at a local farmer’s market because of his biblical views
on marriage. [I wrote about this case in
a previous blog posting of Monday, June 12, 2017 – “Unless You Affirm Same-Sex Marriage, You Can’t Sell Produce”].
City officials developed a new vendor’s
rule after Steve Tennes of Country Mill Farms posted on his Facebook page that
he believes in the biblical view of marriage of being only between a man and a
woman. In addition, he had not allowed
his farm - a popular wedding spot - to be used to host same-sex “weddings” … a
stance the city said violated its civil rights ordinance.
Tennes was represented by the Alliance
Defending Freedom (ADF) legal firm. His
lawyer, Kate Anderson, says, “just like all Americans, a farmer should be free
to live and speak according to his deeply held religious beliefs without fear
of government punishment.” The attorney
says the court found that East Lansing officials changed their market policy to
shut out Tennes because they don’t like his Catholic beliefs regarding
marriage. Anderson says the court was right
to issue this order, which now will allow Tennes and his family to return to
selling his produce at the 2017 farmer’s market while his case moves forward.
Thank God for Christians (like Tennes)
and legal firms (like ADF) who take stands for our constitutional right of
religious liberty!
Rev.
Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain
(Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor,
Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel
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