The Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) filed suit in federal court last week after a new city ordinance forced a Texas church to suspend its ministry to parolees.
The House Where Jesus Shines, sponsored by the Church of the Open Door, is suing the city of Bellmead after it changed the zoning on the ministry’s new property to keep it from opening. The carefully tailored ordinance, which followed complaints from neighbors, prohibits the ministry from operating anywhere in the city.
“Churches should not be singled out for discrimination by a city’s zoning restrictions,” ADF's Dan Dalton said. “City officials violated federal law when they chose to pass this discriminatory ordinance.”
The House Where Jesus Shines aims to provide faith-based transitional care, substance-abuse treatment, recovery services, job training and assistance in locating employment.
