The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., has filed a lawsuit against the city over the restrictions it imposed in response to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Catholic News Agency reports.
"These arbitrary restrictions violate the rights of more than 650,000 D.C.-area Catholics, who — at the end of this most difficult year — now face the chilling prospect of being told that there is no room for them at the Church this Christmas," reads the complaint.
The lawsuit, which cites the recent Supreme Court ruling against New York's restrictions on religious gatherings, claims the city violated the First Amendment rights of their parishioners by placing a "discriminatory" 50-person limit on gatherings in houses of worship instead of placing the limit based on the individual place's capacity.
"The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception — the largest Catholic Church in the United States — could accommodate thousands of worshippers," the lawsuit reads. "Indeed, the Statue of Liberty would fit inside with room to spare. Yet under the Mayor's orders, all of these churches are subject to the same cap of 50 people."
The National Law Journal notes the Archdiocese has hired former White House counsel Don McGahn, along with a team of attorneys from the law firm Jones Day, to represent them in the case.
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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