By Jack Wyman

Lorie Smith didn’t intend to be notable.

She didn’t seek the limelight. Nor did she welcome controversy.

She’s not a lawyer, a judge, or a politician. Lorie is an artist. She designs wedding websites.

Lorie’s the latest contestant in the ongoing struggle over the meaning, protections, and limits of the First Amendment. That’s right, she refused to design a wedding website for a gay couple.

She’s a Christian. She doesn’t believe in homosexual marriage. She adhered to her beliefs, followed her conscience, and just said no.

We’ve seen this before. We may see it again.

Lorie Smith didn’t wait to be sued. She took her case to court. The Colorado courts decided against her. They said she had to deny her beliefs and design a website for gay couples, whether it violated her convictions or not.

The U.S. Supreme Court, however, took her side in a decisive 6-3 ruling. The court said Lorie has the right to say no. She has the right to follow the dictates of her conscience. She has the constitutional right to exercise her freedom of speech.

More than this, the high court protected Lorie Smith’s freedom of conscience, freedom of thought, freedom of belief, and her freedom of expression.

Conservatives across the nation hailed the decision as a victory for free speech. They argued that a conservative court majority had made a morally and constitutionally conservative decision.

That’s how it’s politically perceived: with the court sharply divided, as is the country, every decision is a left-right struggle; a zero-sum proposition. Ideological and partisan warfare from the bench.

It may be argued, however, that this decision for individual freedom of thought and expression was not a conservative victory, but a liberal one. It did not demand conformity, it affirmed liberty. The Supreme Court did not curtail individuality; it celebrated diversity. The court did not side with the majority, it honored the solitary conviction and dissent of a single courageous mind.

Years ago, when the high court gave permission for schools to remove children who, because they were Jehovah’s Witnesses, refused to recite the Pledge of Allegiance in the classroom, Justice Harlan Stone wrote a vigorous dissent. The “very essence” of liberty, Stone wrote, “is the freedom of the individual from compulsion as to what he shall think and what he shall say.”

He added:

The “guarantees of civil liberty are but the guarantees of freedom of the human mind and spirit and of reasonable freedom and opportunity to express them.”

Civil libertarianism has a rich and noble heritage in American liberalism. Just ask the American Civil Liberties Union, that sturdy icon of individual conscience; the bane of conservatives forever.

“I have sworn upon the altar of God,” said Thomas Jefferson, “eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.”

Following widespread persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses, the Supreme Court reversed its position in a subsequent case. It came roaring back in defense of the individual. Nothing mattered more constitutionally, said the court, than forbidding the State “to prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion.”

That’s the classic liberal position. The dignity of the individual. It’s the underlying constitutional principle that protected and eventually expanded rights and freedoms—for African Americans, for women, for the criminally charged, and for gay women and men. That all Americans might stand equal under the law, with liberty and justice for all.

And, yes, for Christians too.

In America, the law and the courts have advanced justice, freedom, and opportunity. They’ve protected the lonely voices, the minority views, the morally and religiously convinced. That’s what makes America the special nation it is. The protection of civil liberties, of equal rights, and equal treatment under the law, are among our greatest achievements and legacies as a free people.

The law must never be used to coerce any citizen to deny his or her beliefs.

The LGBTQ+ movement has advanced an ambitious cultural, legal, and political agenda with unprecedented success. Although they represent less than 5% of the American population, they have had an enormous impact on society; on morality, public opinion, entertainment, media, and politics. They’ve accumulated and exercised power well beyond their numbers.

They’ve won their seat at the table. But may now be overplaying their hand.

Not content with acceptance, the gay movement seeks to force approval. This is why the court ruled as it did. It’s one thing to win one’s rights; quite another to punish those who do not share our values or choices. It’s tantamount to saying, “My beliefs matter, yours don’t. So you will agree with me, or else.”

In America that’s never true.

“Liberals claim to want to give a hearing to other views,” observed conservative icon William F. Buckley, “but then are shocked and offended to discover that there are other views.”

Giving a hearing to other views. That’s what the court did. It’s what a clear majority of justices thought was right and just. Shouldn’t all of us, as Americans, agree to do that, regardless of our politics or morality?

Isn’t that what we as Christians should have the faith and confidence to do? To show kindness and respect doesn’t betray our moral convictions; it strengthens them. To be charitable isn’t compromise; it’s bearing witness. 

If we are to ever heal our national divisions we must begin with a genuine respect for others—their beliefs, values, convictions. No matter how much we may disagree with them.

We pledge allegiance to a justice and liberty that is indivisible for all. It even protects those of conscience who do not pledge to our flag.

Jesus, understanding our differences, set forth an ageless and transcending principle of thought and conduct that serves us well in times of disagreement. It’s the bridge that spans the chasm of our most profound divisions.

It honors the individual and brings glory to God. We find it in the Sermon on the Mount.

“Do unto others as you would have others do unto you” (Matthew 7:12).

The command that unites all others in a genuine love and mutual respect.

Rooted in justice and expressed in kindness.

The Golden Rule.

To order Jack Wyman’s book, “Everything Else: Stories of Life, Faith and Our World”, go to amazon.com, Christian Book Distributors or barnesandnoble.com. It is also available on Kindle and eBooks.

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