“The D.C. Circuit has now made it clear that government promises and press conferences are not enough to protect religious freedom,” said Kyle Duncan, General Counsel of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, in a statement

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals dealt a blow to the Obama administration by ruling in favor of two Christian schools suing for exemptions from the Obamacare contraception mandate, the Becket Fund announced.

The Court ruled that two lower courts inappropriately dismissed Wheaton College and Belmont Abbey College’s suits, and reinstated the two schools’ lawsuits.

The Court also mandated that the administration follow through on its promises to create a satisfactory religious exemption for the two schools and is requiring the administration to provide updates every 60 days.

The administration announced regulations for Obamacare this winter that required all employers to cover contraception in their health plans for their employees. Catholic groups objected immediately and vocally, as they oppose all forms of contraception. Many Protestant groups also objected as the regulations required them to cover drugs they consider to be abortion-inducing.

The Obama administration promised to create new regulations that protected religious groups’ First Amendment rights but they also finalized regulations that made the objectionable requirements law.

The appellants argued that non-binding statements and promises made by the Obama administration earlier this year should not be enough to exempt the administration from suits over finalized regulations that curtailed religious freedom.

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(Editor’s Note:  The author of this story is the son of Professor William Evans of Erskine College, a frequent contributor to The Aquila Report) 

[Editor’s note: Some of the original URLs (links) referenced in this article are no longer valid, so the links have been removed.]