Name: Evangelical Leaders Seek To Insulate Churches From Some COVID-19 Lawsuits
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Evangelical Leaders Seek To Insulate Churches From Some COVID-19 Lawsuits

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×U.S. EditionPart of HuffPost Politics. ©2022 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved.×churches seek to open their doors for in-person services, a group of mostly evangelical Christian religious leaders is urging Congress to grant faith-based organizations legal immunity from -related negligence lawsuits.In a to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary on Tuesday, nearly 300 religious leaders said they’re concerned about facing a “swarm of lawsuits” from people who will claim they’ve contracted COVID-19 at a house of worship or while receiving services from a religious charity.AdvertisementAs a result, the religious leaders want Congress to include liability limitations for religious organizations in the next COVID-19 economic recovery package.“There is legitimate concern that some people — and their lawyers — will cherry pick certain guidelines from around the nation in order to assign liability to religious organizations,” the letter stated. The cost of defending itself in a negligence lawsuit could cause a faith-based charity to shutter, the leaders wrote. “Indeed, the mere threat of litigation may cause many religious organizations to remain closed far beyond what is necessary,” the letter states.Advertisementsome prominent figures such as the evangelist , Southern Baptist leader , and Family Research Council president Their involvement highlights just how neatly issues that are important to evangelicals line up with the priorities of the Republican Party.As coronavirus restrictions begin lifting in parts of the country, Republican leaders have pushed liability limitations a way to encourage businesses to reopen. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has suggested that the issue needs to be resolved to states. The Kentucky senator announced Tuesday that he’s a coronavirus liability bill that he says would protect “businesses, nonprofits, governments and workers and schools” from virus-related litigation. On the other hand, Democrats are wary that these protections could limit workers’ rights and safety during the pandemic. AdvertisementThe religious leaders’ letter was submitted on the same day that the Senate Judiciary Committee about limiting businesses’ liability during the pandemic.The letter was organized by the First Liberty Institute, a prominent player in the , which seeks to advance and protect conservative religious values.Christian legal groups have adopted a on worship during the pandemic. Some are to reopen en masse with safety measures in place, in defiance of the stay-at-home orders issued by local and state authorities. Others, like the , say that governmental requests to temporarily halt in-person church gatherings are fine as long as religious groups aren’t being singled out. The leaders named in the letter are seeking liability protections from “negligence suits resulting from [religious groups] serving the public or reopening in accordance with local orders.”AdvertisementThe fear of liability exposure will likely help religious organizations bent on opening to focus on proceeding with reasonable care, Lytton said. But granting these groups immunity from lawsuits could be risky. “Immunity from liability would be a dangerous green light to those rare religious organizations and businesses that are in a rush to reopen without being sufficiently mindful of the need to proceed with caution,” he said. A HuffPost Guide To Coronavirus Suggest a correctionNewsletter Sign UpHuffPost's top politics stories, straight to your inbox.Successfully Subscribed!Realness delivered to your inbox

×U.S. EditionPart of HuffPost Politics. ©2022 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved.×churches seek to open their doors for in-person services, a group of mostly evangelical Christian religious leaders is urging Congress to grant faith-based organizations legal immunity from -related negligence lawsuits.In a to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary on Tuesday, nearly 300 religious leaders said they’re concerned about facing a “swarm of lawsuits” from people who will claim they’ve contracted COVID-19 at a house of worship or while receiving services from a religious charity.AdvertisementAs a...

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Carol Kuruvilla

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Evangelical Leaders Seek To Insulate Churches From Some COVID-19 Lawsuits

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