Thus, we were heartened when Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch recently expressed a similar concern about the fragility of our liberties. The justice is particularly troubled about how the COVID emergency became an excuse to weaken civil liberties.
Writing in a case related to border security, Gorsuch said that America's response during the pandemic was one of "the greatest intrusions on civil liberties in the peacetime history of this country."
Justice Gorsuch described his concerns, particularly regarding the attack on religious liberty. He wrote:
"Executive officials across the country issued emergency decrees on a breathtaking scale. Governors and local leaders imposed lockdown orders forcing people to remain in their homes. They shuttered businesses and schools, public and private. They closed churches even as they allowed casinos and other favored businesses to carry on. They threatened violators not just with civil penalties but with criminal sanctions too. They surveilled church parking lots, recorded license plates, and issued notices warning that attendance at even outdoor services satisfying all state social-distancing and hygiene requirements could amount to criminal conduct."
Gorsuch is particularly concerned at how easily Americans accepted restrictions on our liberty. He warned:
"Fear and the desire for safety are powerful motivators. A leader or an expert who claims he can fix everything if only we do exactly as he says, can prove an irresistible force. We do not need to confront a bayonet, we need only a nudge, before we willingly abandon the nicety of requiring laws to be adopted by our legislative representatives and accept rule by decree."
JDFI commends Justice Neil Gorsuch for his eloquent defense of our constitutional liberties, and we urge Christians to be ever-vigilant in defending these rights.
