Bethany Christian Services has filed a federal lawsuit against the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity and the Office of Global Michigan (OGM) for discriminating against it because of its religious hiring practices.
This 2018 photo shows the Bethany Christian Services location in Grand Rapids, Mich. (AP Photo via RNS/Paul Sancya)
According to Bethany, the state denied its contracts to resettle refugee families and place unaccompanied minors in foster homes for the first time since it began contracting with the state in 1981.
“By denying funding for Bethany’s refugee-resettlement services, Michigan officials are blocking critical social services to vulnerable children and families, and jeopardizing jobs at Bethany,” the group said in a press statement.
Bethany is the country’s largest Christian adoption and foster agency and one of 10 refugee resettlement agencies in the U.S.
In 2023, Bethany reported helping over 600 refugees and immigrants and placed around 300 unaccompanied minor refugees in foster families in the state.
But this year, the State of Michigan began denying contracts to Bethany. According to Bethany’s General Counsel Nhung Hurst, the state implemented a new requirement requiring organizations to hire people from all religions.
Hurst said contracts with Michigan dating back decades have never included this requirement and that no other organizations were affected by the new provision.
Bethany requires its employees to agree to its statement of faith, which is a restatement of the Apostles’ Creed, a summary of beliefs used by Christians around the world.
“Federal law is clear, and the courts have repeatedly affirmed that faith-based 501(c)3 nonprofit organizations, like ours, can hire staff and select leaders who share the organization’s faith mission. Federal law affirms that Muslim nonprofits can hire Muslims; Jewish nonprofits can hire people of Jewish faith; and Christian nonprofits can hire Christians,” Hurst said.
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Another refugee resettlement agency, World Relief, has a statement of faith that employees must affirm. It does not list a location in Michigan on its website.
Bethany said it made 19 repeated attempts to discuss the situation with the OGM and also prayed for a resolution. After they were unsuccessful, Bethany asked the federal court to intervene and enjoin the OGM from ending the existing contracts until a final resolution of its religious discrimination claims can be reached.
According to Steven McFarland, who is co-counsel on the case and also works as director for the Center for Law and Religious Freedom at the Christian Legal Society, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act has protected faith-based organizations from the government interfering with their hiring practices for six decades.
“For Congress in 1964, the First Amendment was clear enough, not to mention common sense, that what makes religious organizations religious is what they believe, communicate, and exercise through their staff,” he told Christianity Today.
A local news station, WOOD in Grand Rapids, reported in January that after Keith Cureton took over as CEO of Bethany in July 2023, the strict hiring of Christians to work at Bethany began to be enforced. An employee, who did not wish to be named, called it a “culture clash.”
Prior leadership had allowed exceptions to the policy, the report claimed.
When asked about the hiring policy change, Hurst told Christianity Today, “Like any organization, sometimes you have differences in implementation, but we are unwavering in our mission and our values and our statement of faith.”
In 2019, Bethany faced a similar situation when Michigan required foster agencies to allow persons who identify as LGBTQ to be eligible for foster placements. Bethany changed its policies then, arguing it was the only way for Christians to continue caring for foster children.
“Bethany remains deeply committed to serving vulnerable children and families, ensuring they have the support they need to thrive, even as we work to protect our legal rights,” Hurst said.
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