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Court Dismisses Church Suit Against New Jersey for Threatening its Religious Freedom

Church may be prosecuted for refusing to rent pavilion for lesbian civil union ceremony

By John Connolly

OCEAN GROVE, New Jersey, November 15, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The suit filed by a United Methodist Church group against New Jersey state officials for threatening to prosecute it for religious beliefs had its case dismissed from federal court on Wednesday.

A New Jersey lesbian couple filed a civil rights complaint against the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association (OGCMA), a group affiliated with the United Methodist Church, for not allowing them to rent the group's pavilion for a homosexual civil union ceremony in July, and the OGCMA filed its own lawsuit in August.

U.S. District Judge Joel Pisano, basing his decision on a regulation that requires the federal court system to abstain from interference in a case where the plaintiff has an adequate state-court forum for raising constitutional claims, dismissed the case because the state-level authority has not yet made a ruling for or against OGCMA.

The OGCMA has steadfastly maintained the government has no right to force a religious organization to act contrary to that organization's religious beliefs.

Under New Jersey anti-discrimination law, any organization offering goods or services to the public may not deny any individual those goods or services based on sexual orientation. New Jersey state officials have yet to make a ruling as to whether or not OGCMA's pavilion is a place of public accommodation.

See previous LifeSiteNews.com.coverage:

Methodists Sue New Jersey over Attempt to Force Gay "Marriage" at Church Owned Camp
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/aug/07082104.html

Methodist Camp Meeting Association Sues New Jersey for Civil Union Investigation
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/aug/07081501.html

Lesbian Couple Files Complaint against Church for Refusing Civil Union Ceremony
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/jul/07071011.html ;

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