Missouri State University has folded under a lawsuit by my former boss David French, director of the Alliance Defense Fund's Center for Academic Freedom. A professor had required his students in MSU's school of social work to sign a letter to the state legislature supporting homosexuals' right to be foster parents. A Christian student refused and was subjected to two and a half hours of beration because her religious beliefs were supposedly at odds with those of the National Association of Social Workers' code of ethics. Professors asked her invasive questions such as "Do you think homosexuals are sinners?" and "Do you think I'm a sinner?" In order to be allowed to graduate she was required to sign a contract stating that she would conform to the NASW's code of ethics. She refused.
MSU's president suspended the professor of all administrative duties (he was chair of the department) and has commissioned a committee to investigate the School of Social Work. Furthermore, he has agreed to wave the tuition for the plaintiff's graduate studies and agreed to pay legal fees and a lump sum to cover the student's living expenses until she finishes her graduate work. Owch.
It's good to see Christians pushing back. Sometimes we're prone to take abuse from such administrators in the spirit of "turning the other cheek." However, this isn't a matter of taking an insult graciously to be a witness for Christ, it is a matter of asserting one's privileges as an American citizen. Paul was not afraid to assert his Roman citizenship to avert punishment and the stifling of the Gospel (see Acts 28:24-25). This is a wise precedent for American Christians and an admonition to take full advantage of their right to freedom of conscience, to allow their beliefs to shape their opinions and practices.
