County Sued for Using Zoning Laws to Bar Church's Religious Classes
by Allie Martin and Jenni Parker
July 25, 2006
(AgapePress) - - A non-denominational megachurch is suing a Virginia county in an effort to keep offering classes to students pursuing religious degrees through a nearby seminary. Officials in Fairfax County say McLean Bible Church in Tyson's Corner may not host the religion classes without first obtaining the County's permission to operate as a college. Fairfax County claims the church's classes, which students can take toward a Master's degree in Theology or Divinity at a nearby seminary, are in violation of local zoning guidelines. County officials say the Bible study and religious ministry classes at the church were not included as part of its use permit, which was issued in 1999. The government officials are insisting that if McLean Bible Church wants to conduct such classes, it must qualify as a college or university.
Erik Zimmerman, research counsel with the American Center for Law & Justice (ACLJ), believes the County may be reacting to pressure from a group of neighborhood activists who have voiced opposition to the church and the traffic it brings to the area. But church officials say fewer than 100 people are enrolled in the religion classes at any one time, so the attorney feels their impact on local traffic is not really very substantial.
On July 3, the ACLJ filed a lawsuit on behalf of McLean Bible Church. The suit was filed in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, and asserts that Fairfax County's actions violated the church's constitutional rights to freedom of speech, free exercise of religion, freedom of association, and equal protection. The complaint also alleges the County violated the church's statutory rights under an important federal statute.
"There is a law that was passed in 2000 called the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act [RLUIPA]," Zimmerman notes. That law, he explains, "applies to situations like zoning regulations, in this case; and it prevents local governments from using zoning policies ... in a way that would substantially burden a religious group's practice of their faith."
In answer to the County's claim that the classes were not included in the church's original use permit, the ACLJ has stated that McLean Bible Church, like most other houses of worship in the U.S., maintains study of the Bible as an integral part of its ministry. When that permit was approved, the legal organization asserts, as far as the County was concerned there was no issue that religious education, which had already taken place at the church since the 1980s, was a central element of the church's mission.
Although McLean Bible Church entered into an agreement with Capitol Bible Seminary to administer some aspects of its Bible study and religious ministry classes, ACLJ maintains that this has not changed the church's educational programs or purpose, nor has it affected the scope, nature and relative size of the classes offered. Furthermore, the church neither issues academic credit nor confers degrees.
So, although Capitol Bible Seminary may, at its discretion, award credit for classes held at the church, ACLJ argues, McLean Bible Church has no desire to be officially recognized as an institution of higher learning, as the County has ruled the church must if it is to continue offering its religious education classes. Zimmerman believes Fairfax County is being unfair.
"One of the things that we mentioned in our federal lawsuit," the ACLJ attorney notes, "is the fact that, although the church has been told they need to be recognized as a college or university, it's almost as if the County officials are using that as a way to put more burdensome restrictions on the church."
ACLJ chief counsel Jay Sekulow points out that when governments use zoning laws or land use regulations to ban religious activity, RLUIPA requires the government entity to show that it has a compelling, overriding interest supporting its action. He says Fairfax County has made no such showing.
Also, Sekulow notes that other churches in Fairfax County hold the same or similar classes to those McLean Bible Church has been offering, and county businesses have been permitted to conduct degree credit classes without having first to qualify for a permit to function as a college or university. He says by compelling the church to qualify for and obtain such a permit, the County has violated anti-discrimination portions of the law.
