Some Southern Baptist churches and organizations are suing the government for the Affordable Care Act on the grounds that requiring employers to cover contraceptives is against religious freedom.
But Eddie Gilley, director of Gainesville-based Baptist Collegiate Ministries, said local Baptist churches are not involved with the lawsuit.
Each church has its own leadership to make decisions independently from other churches, he said.
“They’re in a lawsuit because leaders decided to take that action,” Gilley said. “It’s not a contraception issue. It’s an abortion issue. It’s having the government tell religious organizations they have to, against their belief.”
But Brittany Langbauer, a 21-year-old UF elementary education senior and long-time Southern Baptist, said the lawsuits seem irrelevant. She said she’s never been taught contraceptives are against her religion.
“We don’t believe in abortion, but family planning is responsible,” she said.
She said the lawsuits could stem from conservative Southern Baptists, who tend to have a negative view of birth control and believe unmarried people will use it to have sex instead of for family planning.
“I’ve been to church my whole life,” she said. “I’ve never been preached against birth control.”
Langbauer said she didn’t see any religious aspect to employers having to cover contraception for employees.
“I’ve never thought of contraception as a religious issue,” she said. “No one argues against employers covering doctors visits or dental cleanings or any other medication. That’s what I see it as: medication.”
Kylie Lacusky, the president of UF’s branch of Vox: Voices for Planned Parenthood, wrote in an email that she does not agree with the churches’ lawsuits.
“The affordable care act [sic] is helping a lot of Americans, especially women, and it’s unfortunate that these churches disagree with that,” said the 19-year-old UF history junior. “I’m not a labor expert, but I do know that contraception coverage is a vital part of preventative care for many women ... Refusing to cover part of an employee’s basic health care does your employees a great disservice.”
A version of this story ran on page 5 on 10/21/2013 under the headline "Gainesville religious groups not affected by Baptist lawsuit"
