TWH — Three recent news reports highlight why the distinction between religious belief and governmental action is essential to understanding religious freedom. Individuals have a constitutional right to express their religious convictions, including beliefs that others may find objectionable. For those seeking public office, however, a critical question remains: whether personal religious convictions will influence their treatment of constituents or their legislative decisions.
That question provides a compelling contrast between two stories emerging from Washington State and the National Council of Churches (NCC). In Washington, a Christian pastor characterizes communication with deities outside Christianity as witchcraft, while his wife, a candidate for public office, appears to agree. Meanwhile, the NCC, a major Christian ecumenical organization, has publicly rejected religious coercion and Christian nationalism, emphasizing religious pluralism and freedom of conscience as fundamental principles. Together, the stories illustrate differing Christian perspectives on religious diversity and the relationship between faith and government.
A third story, unfolding in Florida, examines religious freedom from another perspective. Echoing questions raised in a case before the U.S. Supreme Court, a Christian church has resumed services for people experiencing homelessness despite a county zoning violation notice. Church leaders maintain that their charitable work constitutes an expression of religious faith, while neighbors have raised concerns about its effects on the surrounding residential community. The church may seek protection under the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA), which protects religious institutions against certain discriminatory or unduly burdensome land-use regulations.
Although the Florida dispute involves a Christian congregation, its implications extend to Pagan and other minority religious communities that may encounter zoning restrictions when establishing temples, maintaining ritual spaces, or conducting religious activities.
Together, these three stories raise a central question in American public life: how can religious freedom protect individual conscience, accommodate diverse beliefs, and maintain appropriate boundaries between religious practice and governmental authority?
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Washington Candidate for State House: “Anyone trying to communicate with gods or God outside of Jesus Christ is doing witchcraft.”
GIG HARBOR, Wash. — A Republican candidate for the Washington State House of Representatives is facing scrutiny after previously deleted church videos surfaced showing her apparently agreeing with her husband’s assertion that religious practices outside Christianity constitute witchcraft.
Katy Cornell, a founding pastor of SOZO Church in Belfair, is running for an open seat in Washington’s 26th Legislative District against Democrat Renee Hernandez Greenfield. According to The Seattle Times, videos of sermons delivered by Cornell and her husband, Tom Cornell, were preserved and circulated by a social media account opposing Christian nationalism.
In one recording, Tom Cornell declares that “anyone trying to communicate with gods or God outside of Jesus Christ is doing witchcraft.” Katy Cornell appears to nod and responds, “yes.”
Tom Cornell said it very explicitly last year- they need to get righteous people into government so they can influence it.
Here he is mentioning his wife Katy Cornell for State Representative for LD-26 Position 2 in that quest for a Christian Nation.
#waleg #ld26 #kitsap #pierce
— Christian Nationalism is For Losers (@localfascistfinder.bsky.social) July 9, 2026 at 3:30 PM
The statement effectively characterizes communication with non-Christian deities as witchcraft, encompassing religious practices far beyond contemporary Paganism, including traditions whose adherents do not identify as Witches.
The controversy intensified after Tom Cornell acknowledged removing several thousand church videos from YouTube and the congregation’s website, explaining that he feared recordings would be taken out of context during his wife’s political campaign.
Katy Cornell rejected accusations that she supports Christian nationalism, telling The Seattle Times that she does not believe government should establish or enforce Christianity or any other religion. She maintained that she would represent constituents regardless of their religious or political beliefs.
Here is Katy Cornell in 2024 mixing preaching about US politics and the need for Christians to get loud about their beliefs because they are “first and foremost citizens of heaven.”
She tells them “I am not an ambassador for a party… I’m an ambassador for the ways of the Lord.”
#waleg #ld26
— Christian Nationalism is For Losers (@localfascistfinder.bsky.social) July 9, 2026 at 3:30 PM
Cornell did not directly address questions about the video concerning witchcraft.
Her Democratic opponent characterized the recordings and their removal as troubling, raising questions about representation in a religiously diverse district.
The controversy highlights a distinction between constitutionally protected religious expression and the responsibilities of elected officials to uphold religious freedom for constituents of every faith, including Pagans, Witches, and practitioners of other minority religions.
National Council of Churches Rejects Christian Nationalism and Defends Religious Freedom
PHILADELPHIA — The National Council of Churches (NCC) has reaffirmed its commitment to religious freedom, opposed a planned military execution, and urged Americans to protect voting rights in a series of statements adopted during its October gathering in Philadelphia. More importantly, they affirmed First Amendment liberties,
According to the Orthodox Observer, the council’s Governing Board approved four statements addressing capital punishment, humanitarian conditions in Cuba, voting rights, and religious liberty. Archbishop Elpidophoros of America, chair of the Governing Board, emphasized that freedom of conscience must extend to people of every religious tradition.
Speaking at the council’s Christian Unity Gathering, Elpidophoros rejected the proposition that the United States should be a Christian nation, arguing that such an arrangement conflicts with the country’s founding principles.
He emphasized that the First Amendment protects freedom from religion as well as freedom of religion, and that religious belief must remain a matter of individual conscience rather than governmental mandate.
The Archbishop further maintained that no religious group should elevate its interests above those of others. Religious dialogue and persuasion, he argued, must never become coercion.
Separately, the NCC urged President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to halt the scheduled December 3 execution of Nidal Hasan, convicted of killing 13 people and wounding 32 at Fort Hood in 2009. Although the administration abandoned plans to livestream the execution, the council reiterated its longstanding opposition to capital punishment.
The organization also called for humanitarian assistance to Cuba and condemned voter intimidation, election disinformation, and efforts to suppress lawful votes.
For Pagan and other minority religious communities, the council’s explicit rejection of government-imposed Christianity is particularly significant. Its statements underscore that religious freedom requires protecting beliefs and practices beyond those of the country’s historically dominant religious institutions.
Florida Church Challenges Zoning Restrictions on Homeless Ministry, Raising Religious Freedom Questions
SARASOTA, Fla. — A Florida church’s dispute with county officials over services for people experiencing homelessness could become a significant test of federal religious freedom protections, with implications for religious organizations seeking to use their properties for activities they consider central to their faith.
Remnant Church, founded in 2015 by Pastor Frank Burns and his wife, Tammy, operates Remnant Cafe, which provides meals, showers, laundry facilities, and clothing to unhoused individuals. Church leaders maintain that these services constitute religious practice rather than a separate social services operation.
According to reporting by Suncoast Searchlight, republished by Sarasota Magazine, Sarasota County issued a zoning violation notice following neighborhood complaints. Officials contend that the church’s property is not zoned to operate a social services facility.
Residents have raised concerns about safety, sanitation, and disturbances affecting nearby homes. Church leaders temporarily reduced services before restoring full operations and announcing their intention to challenge the restrictions.
The church plans to invoke the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA), a federal law enacted in 2000 that protects religious institutions against certain land-use regulations that substantially burden religious exercise. RLUIPA does not automatically exempt religious institutions from zoning regulations. It provides protections under specified circumstances, including when a land-use regulation imposes a substantial burden.
The dispute comes as the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to consider a separate Kentucky case involving zoning approval for a proposed Marian shrine. Attorneys involved in that litigation have suggested that similar federal protections could apply to Remnant Church.
The Sarasota case raises questions about how governments balance legitimate zoning and neighborhood concerns against religious organizations’ rights to conduct activities grounded in their beliefs.
Although Remnant Church is Christian, the legal principles extend to minority religious communities, including Pagan congregations seeking to establish temples, maintain ritual spaces, or conduct religious activities on their properties.
The outcome could help clarify how religious freedom protections apply when charitable service, worship, and local land-use regulations intersect.
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