Because the carnal mind is enmity against God:
Romans 8:7
"On Thursday, nine judges who serve on the Washington State Supreme Court ruled against florist Barronelle Stutzman of Richland, Washington—a 72 year-old grandmother who now faces fines of hundreds of thousands of dollars for desiring to run her local flower shop according to orthodox Christian beliefs.
Prior to the court battle, Stutzman had known the plaintiff Rob Ingersoll and served his needs for more than nine years—using her artistic talents to make birthdays, funerals and other occasions
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| The 9 members of the Court who OPPOSE RELIGIOUS LIBERTY |
Soon after Washington state legalized gay marriage in 2012, this small flower shop became ground zero in a battle over the definition of marriage, religious liberty and the force of law that has consumed the nation.
In the case, State of Washington v. Arlene's Flowers, Stutzman contended that creating custom floral arrangements is an issue of artistic free speech and association with her clients.
The gay couple wanted to compel Stutzman to use her “imagination and artistic skill to intimately participate in a same-sex wedding ceremony,” to quote her legal brief authored by attorneys at Alliance Defending Freedom. What Ingersoll and his partner wanted was, for Stutzman, tantamount to endorsing gay marriage.
The ruling by the Washington Supreme Court orders Stutzman to pay the legal fees of the ACLU and other lawyers representing Ingersoll, which could ultimately tally in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, in addition to $1,001 fine per a lower court ruling.
“What many find objectionable are participating in services that have an overtly sacramental meaning,” explains Walker.
In addition to appealing the ruling to the Supreme Court, Alliance Defending Freedom has called on President Donald Trump to issue an executive order to protect the religious freedom rights of Stutzman and others.
“President Trump, who has promised to make religious liberty the ‘first priority’ of his administration, has an opportunity to take a stand against the ongoing efforts to marginalize people of faith,” states the public interest legal group."
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