Greg Baylor, a lawyer and advocate, discussed the importance of the First Amendment and Christian rights in a lecture at Oklahoma Christian University on Tuesday.
Baylor is one of the top religious liberty lawyers in the country, serving as senior counsel with Alliance Defending Freedom at its Washington, D.C., office. Baylor litigates cases that aim to better the rights and liberties of Christian students, faculty and staff at public colleges and universities across the nation.
“Religious liberty was the first civil rights in America that was fought to be created,” Baylor said. “First rights are rights to religious liberty that are not bestowed by law but by the Creator. This theological assertion is the birthplace of the fight for religious freedom today.”
Baylor has been practicing law since 1990, and before he worked with the Alliance Defending Freedom group, he served as director of the Christian Legal Society Center for Law and Religious Freedom in Springfield, Virginia.
His evening presentation in Scott Chapel entitled, “Defending our first freedom; confronting the threats to religious liberty,” contained information about the protection of Christian rights.
“There are many threats to religious freedom,” Baylor said. “Two main threats of religious freedom today are the gay rights movement and the reproductive rights agenda.”
Baylor said the gay rights movement conflicts with religious liberty by it trying to create laws that state no one can discriminate against anyone who is lesbian, gay, bi-sexual or transgender.
Which he said could mean some institutions could lose accreditation for not admitting students that are openly lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, or transgender.
“The reproductive rights agenda also conflicts with religious liberty in two ways,” Baylor said. “By infringing on the right of healthcare professionals to deny an abortion due to religious views and by contraceptive healthcare mandates.”
Recent cases brought before the Supreme Courts about the contraceptive healthcare mandates include the Hobby Lobby case, filed by Oklahoman David Green against the enforcement of the contraception rule of the Affordable Healthcare Act.
“I think, in general, Christians could take a more kind of enthused approach about this kind of topic,” Sean Vandyke, first year computer engineering major, said. “One problem I had just with his presentational style is that he just seemed very on the defensive when it comes to religious liberty and talked about threats that we have.”
First year student Megan McKinley said she believes Christians should be more actively involved in religious liberty, but could take a more active and emotional approach to it rather than defensive.
“Above all, our main continual cause for hope if that we have a God who is sovereign, hears our prayers, and ultimately answers them according to his plan,” Baylor said.
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