Thirteen faith leaders ask judge to strike down Missouri’s abortion ban

Thirteen faith leaders from Christian and Jewish religious denominations, including one state lawmaker, sued the state of Missouri Thursday over the state’s near-total abortion ban, arguing the ban forces lawmakers’ religious beliefs on Missourians and violates the separation of church and state.

The lawsuit, filed in St. Louis Circuit Court, asks a judge to strike down the abortion ban. A 2019 law that bans the procedure in nearly all cases was triggered in June after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe. v. Wade.

The faith leaders include Kansas City-based Rabbi Doug Alpert of Congregation Kol Ami and Rev. Holly McKissick of Peace Church United Church of Christ. Other plaintiffs include a host of progressive Christian and Jewish leaders from the St. Louis area and Columbia. State Rep. Barbara Phifer, a St. Louis Democrat and retired United Methodist minister, is among the plaintiffs.

“Missouri’s abortion bans are an unconscionable abuse of religion to oppress all Missourians,” Traci Blackmon, the associate general minister of justice and local church ministries at the United Church of Christ and lead plaintiff in the lawsuit, said in an emailed statement.

“Legislators do not have the right to impose their faith on me or anyone else.”

Senate President Pro Tem Caleb Rowden, a Columbia Republican who has supported the state’s abortion ban, told reporters Thursday that the lawsuit was foolish.

“We were acting on the belief that life is precious and should be treated as such,” he said, referring to the abortion ban. “I don’t think that’s a religious belief. I think people need to understand what separation of church and state is.”

Along with the state of Missouri, the lawsuit names as defendants a host of Missouri officials who were either instrumental in enacting the ban in 2019 or are tasked with enforcing it. They include Gov. Mike Parson, Attorney General Andrew Bailey, all local prosecuting attorneys across the state and Paula F. Nickelson, the acting director of the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

Bailey, a Republican, in a statement said he looked forward to fighting the case in court. He touted Harris v. McRae, in which the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Hyde Amendment did not affect someone’s religion. The amendment bans using federal Medicaid funds to to cover abortions but does not limit state’s from using their own funds to cover abortion.

“I want Missouri to be the safest state in the nation for children, and that includes unborn children,” the statement said. “As Attorney General, I will protect the Constitution and defend the right to life with every tool at my disposal.”

The lawsuit specifically argues that Missouri’s abortion ban violates three sections of Article I of the state constitution. It says the ban compels Missourians to support or participate in religious beliefs, favor a particular religion and uses public money to support religion.

The suit includes a list of Missouri lawmakers who made religious comments in favor of enacting the abortion ban in 2019, including state Sen. Holly Thompson Rehder, who was then a member of the House.

“I do truly understand the many, difficult choices that have been talked about today, but to me, God doesn’t give us a choice in this area. He is the creator of life. And I, being made in his image and likeness, don’t get to choose to take that away, no matter how that child came to be,” Rehder said on the House floor in 2019. “To me, life begins at conception, and my God doesn’t give that option.”

The abortion ban, part of a law that was passed by both chambers of the GOP-controlled General Assembly and signed into law by Parson, does not include exceptions for rape and incest. The only exception is for medical emergencies.

Since the law was triggered in June, Abortion activists and doctors have criticized it as being too vague and say it will force women to carry unsafe pregnancies or travel out of state to get the procedure. They also argue it puts an unnecessary strain on doctors who have to perform an abortion to save a woman’s life.

Thursday’s lawsuit comes as Democrats and abortion rights groups are weighing a potential ballot measure that would restore some form of abortion rights in Missouri.