Jewish Couple Sues to Stop Tennessee Christians From Helping With Adoptions

Elizabeth and Gabriel Rutan-Ram are suing the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services, but their real beef is with the Holston United Methodist Home for Children. The Knoxville couple, who are Jewish, wished to adopt a boy from Florida, but part of the adoption process involved them taking a state-approved family training course.

According to the lawsuit they filed in state court, they reached out to Holston United because it was the only government-approved agency that could provide them the services they needed. But after initially thinking the home would work with them, they were told that the Methodist group’s core religious principles forbid it from placing children in non-Christian homes. . .

But if they win their case, it will be a blow to religious freedom rather than a triumph for it.

The goal of the lawsuit is to overturn legislation signed into law by Gov. Bill Lee in January 2020 that explicitly permits religious adoption agencies to decline to be involved in cases that “would violate the agency’s written religious or moral convictions or policies.” The Rutan-Rams’ lawyers — backed by the American Civil Liberties Union — contend the law violates both the Tennessee Constitution and the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees freedom of religion. (Read more from “Jewish Couple Sues to Stop Tennessee Christians From Helping With Adoptions” HERE)

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