Abuse of Anti-Discrimination Laws

The Apostle Paul speaking to the Ephesians instructed them to, '...have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them' (Eph. 5:11). Ever since the Apostle penned those words, Christians have sought to implement that teaching in their daily lives. That practice (of separation from the promotion of wicked activities) however, is becoming more and more difficult in our ultra-tolerant society.

A good case in point is the New Mexico commission ruling against a Christian photographer. The commission found an Albuquerque photography company, run by a Christian husband and wife, guilty of 'sexual orientation' discrimination under state anti-discrimination laws for declining to photograph a same-sex 'commitment ceremony.'

A same-sex couple asked the owner of Elaine Photography in Albuquerque, to photograph a 'commitment ceremony' that the two women wanted to hold in a nearby town. It should be noted that neither marriage nor civil unions are legal between members of the same sex in New Mexico.

The owner declined because her and her husband's Christian beliefs are in conflict with the message communicated by the ceremony. The same-sex couple filed a complaint with the New Mexico Human Rights Commission, accusing Elaine Photography of discrimination based on sexual orientation. The commission held a one-day trial in January.

On April 9th the commission issued an order finding that Elaine Photography engaged in 'sexual orientation' discrimination prohibited under state law and ordered it to pay $6,637.94 in attorneys' fees to the two women who filed the complaint.