Thursday, February 25, 2016

Cupcake Kasich's Casuistry on Religious Liberty


As a Republican Presidential hopeful, Governor John Kasich (R-OH) has been bold about practicing his faith on the campaign hustings.  Kasich has used modern Manichean metaphors which crib from scripture of allusions to Prince of Darkness and Light Worker. Kasich justified his expansion of Medicare thru Obamacare as what one tells St. Peter at the pearly gates for personal divine judgment.

Thus it seems incongruous that Governor Kasich takes such a restrictive view on religious liberty.  While campaigning for President, Kasich tipped his hand towards appealing to LBGTQQ? voters by noting that bakers should make cupcakes for everyone.  Prima facia, this seems fair.

Of course, this is a fallacious simplification of the Sweet Cakes Oregon bakery.  A lesbian couple sought out a Christian bakery to make a same-sex wedding cake but Sweet Cakes owners Aaron and Melissa Klein refused to do so on religious grounds. Homosexual activists advocated a boycott of Sweet Cakes.  Moreover,  Oregon prosecuted them on state discrimination grounds which includes homosexuals and denied their First Amendment Religious Liberty claims.  The Kleins were fined $150,000 and had to close their retail shop.



Selling cupcakes to everyone is quite different than being participants in a wedding ceremony.  The Kleins take their Christian convictions seriously and did not want to be made party to the ceremony, but had no problems selling cupcakes to any customer.  This was not an isolated incident. The rural Indiana pizzaria which was harassed when asked a hypothetical on whether it would cater a same-sex wedding not to politically correct responses also was lambasted, even though they do not cater.

It is not about selling cupcakes.  It is about abrogating American's fundamental freedom in the First Amendment, namely the right of religious liberty and the free exercise thereof.  After the United States Supreme Court usurped marriage contract authority from states in Hodges v. Obgerfell (2015) through Justice Anthony Kennedy's nebulous "right to dignity" claim, faithful Americans must not only tolerate same-sex marriages but must be willing to participate in facilitating the ceremony despite what their consciences dictate. 

So taking Kasich's comment for what it's worth, he believes that there is a freedom to worship behind the doors of a church but there are no rights for ordinary citizens to live their faith in the public square.  

No wonder Tim Allen thinks that Kasich is a Republican that a Democrat would like-- it's tool time!

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