A recent ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals, seventh circuit, has prompted seven higher education groups to file a brief that urges the Supreme Court to overturn the district court’s ruling. The case goes to the University of Wisconsin’s policy not to allocate funds collected from student activity fees to Badger Catholic, a Roman Catholic organization on campus. According to the story at Higher Education News, the seventh circuit’s ruling:
. . . took away the right of Wisconsin, and potentially other public colleges and universities, to support some student activities but to deny funds to organizations for worship services, proselytizing, or other activities that explicitly involve the practice of religion, according to the brief. The groups that sued Wisconsin and that are satisfied with the lower court’s ruling argue that universities should not treat religious activities in any way differently from other student activities — and that the limits used by Wisconsin infringed on the First Amendment.
Is that what they really want to say, that religion is the same as politics, sexual orientation, debate, and chess, or whatever other cause or identity for which Wisconsin students organize?
Of course, it might seem unfair for Christian groups not to receive funding that goes to other students, but is this really a hardship worthy of hiring lawyers and going all the way to the Supreme Court? I imagine that all the attorneys fees could have funded Badger Catholic for a decade at least and probably several masses for dead Badger Catholics along the way. (If the attorneys are doing this pro bono, imagine the other worthy causes that they might have defended had it not been for some Wisconsin students wanting their fair share.)
Meanwhile, is it really too much to ask for Christians to support their own activities? If believers can readily acknowledge the unfairness of being taxed to support indecent art funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, can’t they also understand why Wisconsin students and administrators might object to Protestants receiving funds to conduct Bible studies?
The best solution is likely to drop all fees for students and let them form their own associations and generate their own budgets. Small government has its advantages. Still, the real advantages that come with the true faith should more than compensate for the $1,200 that the dean of students decided not to allocate for InterVarsity Fellowship prayer meetings.
Old Life 