World Vision, Christian Humanitarian Organization, Wins Right To Hire, Fire Based On Religion

By Daniel Burke
Religion News Service

(RNS) World Vision, the Christian humanitarian organization, can fire employees who disagree with its theological tenets, a federal appeals court ruled on Monday (Aug. 23).

In a 2-1 decision, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said that World Vision is a "religious corporation" and therefore exempt from a federal law that bars faith-based discrimination.

"I am satisfied that World Vision has met its burden of showing that the 'general picture' of the organization is 'primarily religious,"' wrote Judge Diarmuid O'Scannlain. "World Vision is a nonprofit organization whose humanitarian relief efforts flow from a profound sense of religious mission."'

Three employees, two of whom had worked at World Vision for 10 years, were fired in 2006 because they did not believe in the divinity of Jesus or the doctrine of the Trinity, O'Scannlain wrote. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 bars religious discrimination, but carves out an exemption for companies engaged in a religious purpose, the court ruled.

Judge Marsha S. Berzon dissented from the majority opinion, saying Congress did not intend to allow all religiously motivated nonprofits to be exempt from the law.

"That interpretation would severely tip the balance away from the pluralistic vision Congress incorporated ... toward a society in which employers could self-declare as religious enclaves from which dissenters can be excluded despite their ability to do the assigned secular work as well as religiously acceptable employees," Berzon wrote.

The decision comes as President Obama is weighing whether the government should help fund religious charities that refuse to hire people of other faiths. White House officials have said the Justice Department is studying the matter, and decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis until a final decision is rendered.

World Vision praised the Ninth Circuit ruling in a statement. "Our Christian faith has been the foundation of our work since the organization was established in 1950, and our hiring policy is vital to the integrity of our mission to serve the poor as followers of Jesus Christ."

Comments

[KWHOO]

04:25 PM on 09/01/2010

I am a non believer. Does this mean I can now issue a religious litmus test and fire all those who believe in superstitions like christianity?

[med1067]

07:00 PM on 08/31/2010

I sponsor a child through World Vision. His family receives help with food, clean water, health care, and education, a vast improvement in his quality of life. They serve the very poor and oppressed children of the world. You are talking about children that have nothing and no hope. What is so bad about an organization that tells children that God and Jesus love you? Some of these children are orphans, so hearing that God loves them when no one else does may bring some comfort to their hearts and minds. Get past the "religion" and be glad someone is reaching them with help and hope.

[Bengalidan]

08:46 PM on 08/31/2010

Maybe the problem is that World Vision cares more for its marketing than for the children they claim to serve. An organization that truly cares for children wants the best workers doing the job to serve those children, not the most indoctrinated workers. If helping children is their aim, then what is the harm with not talking about religion, but telling them that a lot of people of different beliefs care for them and are helping them. Is helping children the aim or the proselytizing? I'm sick of "Christians" who talk it, but don't walk it. And the sheep who blindly follow and justify away their irreligious actions. If they put themselves out there as loving their fellow man, then that is what they should do without asterisks.

[unimatrix0]

11:15 PM on 08/30/2010

If they are going to be exempted like churches, on whether or not to hire certain people, then stop federal funds, and let them have the full enjoyment of that status. This is why we are suppose to seperate church and state.

[RobinSeattle]

08:20 AM on 08/30/2010

And religious nuts wonder why the thought of them having power in government is so frightening.

[jrsposter]

04:14 PM on 08/29/2010

World Vision has the right to be a religious organization. And I have the right not to contribute to it. I cannot believe, however, that it can continue to receive funds from the American taxpayer on the theory that it is a charity so long as it discriminates in hiring on the basis of religion.

[Crushedknee]

03:51 PM on 08/29/2010

What about this religious organizations that receive public funding..Or churchas the engage in private enterprise..Whats to keep a Racist company from claiming this protection while Bidding on road work? Are the courts able to define these on a case by case bases? Big can of worms they opened up..

[Mark Shotzberger]

05:45 PM on 08/28/2010

http://www.subgenius.com/

The above link to the ONLY ONE TRUE Religion!

J.R. "Bob" Dobbs willfully admits he does not practice what he preaches! The orthers do to, but are afraid to admit it!

J.R. "Bob" Dobbs willy admits he cares less about your soul, but only wants your money! Money is all the other so called religions want too. But "Bob" had the balls to stand up and admit it!

J.R. "Bob" Dobbs pays his taxes! The others pay zero taxes while the big wigs of their churchs role around naked in bathtubs full of $100 bills. Well so does "Bob! But at least he does not suck off the teat of the taxpayer!

Enternal Salvations, or TRIPLE YOUR MONEY BACK! Lets see the Pope match THAT deal!

[RobinSeattle]

08:21 AM on 08/30/2010

*lol

[tempting]

02:23 AM on 08/28/2010

These religious nut-jobs won't stop until they get their end of the world action. They all need to be investigated and stopped from getting special treatment based on their religion.

[turfkiller]

01:56 PM on 08/28/2010

The real question is what constitutes a religious ceremony. According to the court, any activity can be called ceremony, be it a charity, hospital medical services, faternity, farming or equipment manufacturing if they state it in their articles of incorporation that it's religious and their belief. They won't lose their tax exmptions but now many businesses who identify themselves as religoius can fire employees for religious reasons as well without regard to performance.

How long do you think it will take the God of Goldman to add religious articles to their incorpration. "I'm doing 'God's work" Lloyd Blankfein.

[c.w.]

04:08 PM on 08/27/2010

This is an absolute outrage, especially considering the fact that World Vision is a major recipient of "foreign aid" money.

[scrzbill]

11:18 PM on 08/26/2010

I think that there needs to be a little more explanation of who these people are. Are they part of the seven mountains? Do they believe they are superior to others and there fore have the right to lie and deceive to others not believing in their fantasies? Are they part of the "C" street group that wants to make America a Christian theocracy? These people are no different than the Taliban when they require their workers, American citizens, to follow a religious standard. If you want to work to help others, there should be no religious qualifications. This country is filled with CHristofascist who have no tolerance for others who do not believe as they do, they are called republicants.

[bsmithslo]

02:34 PM on 08/27/2010

Wow. I wouldn't suppose taking a couple of minutes out of your day to actually read up on WorldVision wouldn't be out of order? It's not as if this is some secretive organization.

[scrzbill]

04:28 PM on 08/27/2010

No it is not secretive. The seven mountains is not secretive either, nor the Assembly of gawd. I don't want a theocracy in this country, Muslim, Morman, or Christian. We have something in this country people like you can comprehend, it is called FREEDOM FROM RELIGION. If they are such great people, why do they not employ people of other religions or no religion? There are many altruistic people in this world. That should be the guideline.

[IMOPINIONH8D]

09:05 AM on 08/28/2010

Exactly, fnndndfvd

[turfkiller]

11:17 PM on 08/26/2010

Is WorldVision a religious entity or an entity papered over with religion?

Charity is Worldvision’s primary activity and not religious dissemination. They won the right to discriminate even though they are not primarily religious in their activity.

Previously, Catholic beneficiary society was not considered a religious corporation. It was not formed to teach or propagate the religious faith, but to cultivate the spirit of fraternity. It’s a club as much as WorldVision is a charity.

Now other organizations whose primary purpose is not religion are more likely to fall within legally permitted discrimination.

This is a radical departure from precedent and not the original intention of congress. This ruling has given new life to broad based religious discrimination without regard to the primary purpose of the organization as long as it’s papered over it by self-identifying any religious purpose they can imagine write it in the articles of incorporation and perform that activity and pretend publically that it’s a religious activity.

You can expect to see once again non-profit manufacturing, mining, farming and similar activities in the future legally meeting these new standards.

Tragically lost is the right to practice our own faith even if you are a waiter at a Catholic social club. Our government cannot to investigate the veracity of their claims and must take them at their word. The court in effect decreeing that Christians and their organizations never ever tell lies, practice bigotry or discriminate. New Christian abominations have been let loose upon us.

[bsmithslo]

02:36 PM on 08/27/2010

Good Lord you are delusional. The only thing determined in this case is whether or not WorldVision is a religious organization. No other issues were decided. The court merely upheld the law as it stands in the CRA of 1964.

[turfkiller]

03:47 PM on 08/27/2010

Really? Keep your insults to your self as they are as accuate as your opinions. I didn't make this up, I pulled 90% from the actual opinion and some brief general history mentioned in that opinon. You are only trying to fool everyone else hoping to delude them.

[scrzbill]

10:44 PM on 08/26/2010

Just another example of christian bigotry. You can work, but you have to follow our dogma or else.

[ArtJunky]

12:32 AM on 08/27/2010

I would bet those little brown kids that WV is "helping" just love to be told they can't eat because they "believe the wrong way..."

I can just imagine WV holding out a glass of water and saying, "you get the water when you say you believe in Jesus Christ..."

So meanwhile, while WV goes through the motion of "caring" for the less fortunate people in the world and here we find they are firing people for having different thoughts on religion...

With this in mind, it's obvious what their motivation is all about...it's about taking in cash, skimming the top 25% off the top for their own pockets and then giving the appearance of being full of Jesus just so they can fool a bunch of sad hypocrites into giving them some money.

What a sad, sad, state.

In other words, if you're brown and starving and willing to beg, PROPERLY, for Jesus food, you can get help, but dare to defy the ones who pay you...you're out of luck...

Yes, Jesus would have done just that...It just warms my heart.

[bsmithslo]

02:37 PM on 08/27/2010

Obviously you care nothing of truth or reality.

WorldVision does not discriminate in who they serve. WorldVision has been extraordinarily responsible stewards of their money. These are both verifiable facts.

[bsmithslo]

02:31 PM on 08/27/2010

Or else what? You can work somewhere where the "dogma" is not a part of the job? At Blockbuster you have to stock shelves, or else! Is that bigotry against those who are opposed to stocking shelves?

[scrzbill]

04:21 PM on 08/27/2010

Non sensical answer. Blockbuster does not require someone to believe or worship in fantasy beings to work.

[Tree201]

04:01 PM on 08/26/2010

Why fire people after they've worked for you for ten years? That's terrible.
However, why would anyone who is not an evangelical christian want to work for this particular organization?

[turfkiller]

11:30 PM on 08/26/2010

The employees originally signed an form stating their beliefs. Over a period of ten years, the employee may have had deeper more meaningfull experiences and progressed closer to God but further away from the beliers in their signed forms. By loving more,loving deeper or experience a life changing experience anyone can change or come to believe something different.

This brings me to the what is the most serious cirticism of main stream Christian religions, they have declared growing up a sin against God. In politics we call them conservatives.

[bsmithslo]

12:08 PM on 08/26/2010

So, this ends up being another case where the HP headline is totally misleading. WorldVision did not "win" the right to do anything. Religious organizations have the right to do exactly what WorldVision did, codified in existing law. The headline could have read that the courts upheld the right to hire and fire or even that they affirmed it. The suggest they won it is simply wrong.

The only issue the 9th Circuit could have addressed (a notoriously Liberal group) is whether or not WorldVision is a religious organization. Clearly it is. There really wasn't anything the 9th Circuit could sink their teeth into.

The final issue, addressed by so many here, is whether or not religious organizations can receive federal money for humanitarian work. Clearly they can under current law. The granting of money for private institutions is legal. The government itself "discriminates" when it comes to hiring and firing for the military. There is no serious suggestion that the funding of WorldView establishes Christianity as the American faith as the funding of Catholic, Jewish, Buddhist, Humanistic, and Muslim humanitarian organizations does not establish them as the American faith. We are pluralistic. We do not establish or exclude. What many would suggest here is that we must exclude. In suggesting this is the case, the posters who believe it are showing a profound lack of understanding of what the law, "discrimination", and the American experiment are about.

[scrzbill]

10:40 PM on 08/26/2010

If you think the 9th circuit is decidedly liberal, then the rest of the court system is decidedly conservative.

[bsmithslo]

02:18 AM on 08/26/2010

There are Jewish charities, Christian charities, Muslim charities , and secular ones. This is not an issue of discrimination whatsoever. There is not one judge anywhere that would suggest that religious issues cannot discriminate based on religion. The only legal question is whether the humanitarian agency has a religious component. Clearly it does. It's mission statement clearly states it.

The government cannot discriminate against funding religious institution for the soul reason of their being religious. Religious institutions have the right to seek public funding, as does secular humanitarian institutions.

The court ruled correctly, case closed.

[123anon]

02:27 AM on 08/26/2010

The real story is how the blazes did 9th circuit.... 9th.... rule this way? Wow. They usually go against anything Christian. Or are there two 9th circuits out there?

[bsmithslo]

09:56 AM on 08/26/2010

They had no choice. The law is very clear on this.