Police Call Church Music 'Disorderly'

If there's ever been any question to as to whether or not our religious rights in our nation are becoming increasingly more under attack, this outrageous violation of our freedoms to practice our religion - as reported by Cybercast News - should settle the question once and for all.

(CNSNews.com) - A Michigan church filed a federal lawsuit after police officers, led by a local prosecutor, entered the sanctuary at least twice without a warrant, alleging the church's music was too loud. In one instance, they threatened to arrest church musicians for disorderly conduct.

Faith Baptist Church, with a congregation of about 10,000 members, is suing local officials in the Township of Waterford, Mich., in a First Amendment case a church attorney said could have national ramifications in establishing what local governments can do in regulating churches.

The suit -- alleging the township violated the church's freedom of religious expression, freedom of speech and freedom of association -- was filed earlier this month in U.S. District Court in Detroit after the church had been subject to what it describes as raids by the Waterford Police Department, led by township prosecutor Walter Bedell.

At least one of those raids occurred during a Sunday service, according to the suit.

The church played contemporary Christian music that included guitars, drums, and other instruments. Township officials contend they were simply trying to enforce local noise laws and that the church is being a bad neighbor.

But "praise and worship" music is a form of religious expression, said Richard Thompson, president of the Thomas More Law Center, a public interest Christian law firm representing the church.

"This is subterfuge to try to interfere with religious exercise that Faith Baptist Church has," Thompson told Cybercast News Service. "The prosecutor and uniformed police officers violated their Fourth Amendment rights.

They were not invited. They burst into the church. Unless they had an arrest warrant or a search warrant, they had no right to go there except for worship."

The Cybercast News article goes into further detail about the specific hardline tactics employed by the prosecutor and the police at his disposal.

The sanctuary that has always been the place of worship is rapidly something that is going by the wayside. When our own elected officials and those sworn to actually protect our constitutional rights behave in this manner, it's little wonder how something like Sunday's Easter events in Chicago could occur.