When Pastor Jeremy Higgens of Calvary Community Church, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, spoke against the “Drag Queen Story Hour” sexualizing children and then endorsed two Christian school board candidates in his personal capacity, political opponents tried to revoke his church’s property tax exemption.

Dustin Brooks serves on a local diversity and equity committee and is committee chairman of the campaign to elect Katie Lowe Lancaster to the Lynn-Mar School Board. When Pastor Higgens personally endorsed a Christian candidate who ran against Brooks’ candidate, Brooks SUED the pastor!

But Liberty Counsel is on the case.

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Pastor Higgens is well known in the Cedar Rapids area for responding to “Drag Queen Story Hour” by holding his own story hour to read the Christian book Jesus and my Gender.

As school board elections began ramping up, Pastor Higgens used his own personal social media accounts to advocate for and endorse Christian candidates who would protect the innocence of local school children.

When Pastor Higgens did not endorse Dustin Brooks’ candidate, Brooks filed a complaint with the Iowa Department of Revenue (IDR) demanding the state revoke the property tax-exempt status of the church, the church parsonage, and the church’s Christian daycare operation.

The retaliatory and baseless petition sought to revoke two property tax exemptions for which Calvary Chapel Iowa is the owner of record — the church parsonage, where the pastor, his wife, and three children reside, and the church’s Christian daycare and school also located on the church campus. 

The petitioners argued these properties were not being used “solely” for religious purposes because the pastor’s family are “non-ecclesiastical personnel” residing in the home and because the daycare takes in revenue.

The complaint even tried to make the ridiculous argument that because Pastor Higgens is “President” of the church, “he should not be considered ecclesiastical personnel.”

In Dustin Brooks’ view of the world, pastors should not be allowed to hold and express personal political opinions, and those who dare to express their personal political ideals should be punished into silence.

Thankfully, both state and federal law hold otherwise.

Iowa has a Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) very similar to the federal RFRA law that protects the religious freedom rights of all citizens — including pastors.

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Liberty Counsel defended Pastor Higgens. According to Iowa’s RFRA, the state cannot substantially burden the exercise of religion without a compelling government interest of “the highest order.” Liberty Counsel argued the petition “cannot survive” Iowa’s RFRA because these challenges could potentially chill expression and hamper the church’s ability to exercise religious functions for its members.

This week, the Iowa Judge agreed with our legal arguments. Pastor Higgens’ speech is a protected right that cannot be impeded by the government, nor can it be punished by political opponents seeking to silence Christian opposition.

“To hold otherwise would be to allow the unaccountable political opponents of a church the option to use the power of the State to target and/or retaliate against the religious organization for the organization’s activities, thereby creating a chilling effect not only on that specific religious group but also all other similarly oriented religious organizations,” wrote Judge Gallagher for the Iowa Administrative Court. “This is precisely the type of religious interference that RFRA was designed to prevent."

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Religious freedom laws protect churches and pastors so they can focus on their mission rather than defending against spurious challenges from those who politically disagree with them. We are pleased that Judge Gallagher properly applied the Iowa RFRA in dismissing this attempt to punish religious and political speech. Frivolous claims brought against a church in Iowa courts also run the risk of being financially costly to any of the petitioners for attorney’s fees and costs.

We keep winning. But the enemies of religious freedom continue to try to silence dissent wherever they can. Sadly, our legal help inbox receives requests for help like this far too often. We need YOUR HELP to continue defending pastors like Jeremy Higgens and any others who dare speak out against the evil afoot in our world.

Liberty Counsel never charges our clients, as few could afford to defend themselves against frivolous lawsuits designed to bankrupt and silence people of faith. Instead, our clients rely on YOU, the faithful Liberty Counsel supporter. Support our legal fund today and have your impact DOUBLED by a special Challenge Grant.

Liberty Counsel offers an excellent guide for pastors and churches, offering legal guidance on religious freedom rights in a time of political volatility.

Mat Staver
Founder and Chairman
Liberty Counsel