Religion · Statewide · WA · September 28, 2026

9th Circuit to Rehear Washington Foster Care Religious Liberty Case

9th Circuit to Rehear Washington Foster Care Religious Liberty Case
Status: HighSeverity: 2 - Directly Affects

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals will once again hear a Washington state religious liberty case, according to Seattle Red. The dispute reportedly involves state requirements tied to gender-ideology affirmation imposed on prospective foster parents. Further details on scheduling and the specific parties are still emerging.

Source: Seattle Red

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Why Bible-Believing Christians Should Care

If Washington is requiring prospective foster parents to affirm gender ideology as a condition of licensure, Christian families and agencies holding to the biblical view that God created humanity male and female face exclusion from foster care simply for holding a historic doctrinal conviction. This is not a peripheral policy question — it tests whether believers can serve vulnerable children without being forced to renounce Scripture's teaching on sex and gender. A Ninth Circuit ruling here could set precedent well beyond Washington, shaping what religious liberty protections mean for Christian foster and adoption ministries nationwide.

We ought to obey God rather than men. — Acts 5:29

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From the book

Most policies currently threatening religious liberty and parental rights were never passed by Congress or by a state legislature. They were enacted by career officials interpreting vague statutes in ways that granted themselves new powers. Activists use Rule 4 to pressure agencies, arguing that broad terms already in existing law, words like safety or non-discrimination, mandate radical new enforcement. The result is a fundamental transformation of society without a single vote being cast.

— Chapter 20, “The Strategic Terrain: The Administrative State”

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