Posted on 05/28/2009 1:30:17 PM PDT by wagglebee
A San Diego pastor says county officials have told him he needs a permit to host a weekly Bible study in his home.
Pastor David Jones and his wife, Mary, were hosting the weekly study near their church, when they say they were visited by a county code enforcement officer. According to Dean Broyles, an attorney for the Joneses, the county official asked the pastor if they hosted a regular weekly meeting in their home, and if they prayed and said "Amen" and "Praise the Lord" at those meetings.
After replying in the affirmative to those inquiries, a subsequent citation notified the couple they were in violation of county regulations, should stop "religious assembly," and needed to apply for a "major use" permit to continue the gatherings -- a process that could cost several thousands dollars.
Jones, his wife, and their attorney, Dean Broyles, were interviewed on the Fox News Channel. Broyles says the couple's rights have been violated.
"The government may not prohibit the free exercise of religion," says the attorney. "And I believe that our Founding Fathers would roll over in their graves if they saw that here in the year 2009 that a pastor and his wife are being told that they can't have a simple Bible study in their own home."
The American Family Association has launched an online petition drive related to the incident, asking the San Diego County Board of Supervisors to immediately stop interfering with the rights of individuals to hold Bible studies in their homes.
Jones and his wife say they will continue to challenge the county's policy. About 15 people attend the weekly meetings.
This is a “teachable moment” where we can prove to other liberals that liberal politicians are tyrants, and ignorant on the law.
Should’a told ‘em it was a wife swapping party, then they’d be ok....
I think there is one more with a bit more detail, different source too.
The only conceivable objection to this would be if there was a huge crush of cars in a residential neighborhood.
But 15 people? Maybe 7 or 8 cars? This is clearly unconstitutional.
That was sarcasm right?
Seeing a Marxist in the White House has encouraged Leftist wannabe totalitarians all over the country to help the U.S. catch up with more fully developed Communist countries like China, where “house churches” are viciously crushed by the authorities.
Baptist Ping
I would have undoubtedly told the government clown to go directly to ...! This is incredible, but unfortunately not unbelievable today.
If this were the case, the only appropriate reaction is to further regulate parking in the area. This would solve the neighbor's problem. Requiring the party to pay for a permit does not solve the neighbor's problem, only enriches the local government.
crickets chirp.
Tell them to go embrace themselves and ignore them...
It’s getting ridiculous.
There’s more. Dialup is awful. I am soooo glad I got rid of it.
I’m afraid you may be right. You can only slap God in the face so much and then He reacts...
Wow. This is very disturbing....
I don’t recall the part of the Constitution that addresses the zoning limitations on the 1st Amendment. Over the last 50 years we have quietly let the 1st Amendment be washed away by zoning, and permits, and campaign finance laws. I really don’t think John Adams or Thomas Jefferson would give a rats ass about parking. Freedom of assembly does not exist in America today.
The county employee notified the couple that the small Bible study, with an average of 15 people attending, was in violation of County regulations, according to Broyles.
No mention of the bureaucrat complaining about the cars.
No, I’m not saying that anyone SHOULD be coming around from the County asking about Bible reading or telling anyone not to hold meetings.
I just said that the ONLY reason I could think of for neighbors to complain, which is how these things usually start, was too many cars blocking up the street. But the number of cars was actually pretty small.
So it really makes no sense.
If there WERE a lot of cars, then there might be some reason to try to work something out to avoid inconveniencing the neighbors. But there WEREN’T.
In other words, I’d tell them to go suck eggs.
First they came for the Pro-Life Catholics and I did not speak out because I was not a Pro-Life or Catholic. Then they came for the Evangelical Home-Schoolers and I did not speak out because I was not an Evangelicalnor nor did I home school. Then they came for the Veterans and the Gun Owners and I did not speak out because I was not a Veteran and I did not own a gun. They kept coming and soon took away many of my neighbors and I stood by and said nothing, I only worried each time that they had come for me, but they did not. Finally there came a time when they stopped coming and I and the few neighbors who were also spared gathered to discuss how relieved we were that the troubles now seemed to be over and how lucky we were not to have been taken away. And we rejoiced that we had been spared until one neighbor pointed out: “They have no need to come for those who are obedient slaves.”
Sounds to me like an inside job by someone living nearby with civic AUTHORITY.
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