{"id":27157,"date":"2025-04-16T13:39:53","date_gmt":"2025-04-16T17:39:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/news\/?p=27157"},"modified":"2025-04-16T13:39:53","modified_gmt":"2025-04-16T17:39:53","slug":"christian-college-opposes-colorado-bill-it-says-punishes-biblical-beliefs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/news\/2025\/04\/christian-college-opposes-colorado-bill-it-says-punishes-biblical-beliefs","title":{"rendered":"Christian College Opposes Colorado Bill it Says ‘Punishes’ Biblical Beliefs"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Adobe Stock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A Christian college in Colorado is urging lawmakers to reject a controversial bill it says would punish parents and faith communities for living out biblical convictions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Centennial Institute at Colorado Christian University is speaking out against HB25-1312, a measure that would expand transgender protections and define certain parental behaviors\u2014like referring to a child by their birth name\u2014as discrimination.<\/span><\/p>\n

The bill, which is meant to <\/span>bolster protections for transgender people <\/span><\/a>and gender-affirming care, passed in the Colorado House of Representatives on April 6, 2025 and now moves to the Senate.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Known as the “Kelly Loving Act”,<\/span> HB25-1312<\/span><\/a> would add custody considerations for judges to review, including parents using a child’s birth name instead of their new, self-declared name and “misgendering” along with several other trans-related measures. \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>HB25-1312 amends the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act to define deadnaming and misgendering as discriminatory acts.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Opposition to the bill has been spearheaded by The Centennial Institute at Colorado Christian University, and has urged the Colorado Senate to vote \u2018No\u2019 on the bill.
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>\u201cHB25-1312 sets a dangerous precedent by punishing those who live out their biblical convictions,\u201d said<\/span> Greg Schaller, Centennial Institute director.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cReligious freedom doesn\u2019t end when someone disagrees with Scripture. The sacred rights of conscience, which is fundamental to the United States Constitution, guarantees that the state cannot interfere with the rights of parents to raise their children in a manner consistent with their faith,\u201d Schaller said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cA government that claims to care for children while silencing parents and faith communities is not protecting liberty \u2013 it is directly violating it,\u201d said Schaller. \u201cOur laws must reflect eternal truths; not passing ideologies.\u201d<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Schaller\u2019s detractors argue that a person\u2019s view of \u201ceternal truths\u201d depends on their faith background, and even their denominational bias.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

They assert that the law must always be based on scientific and cultural consensus, which can be measured and verified, rather than religious subjectivity. Detractors of The Centennial Institute\u2019s intervention have also argued that the Bible is silent on transgender issues, and that gender is a private matter of personal identity that ought to be respected.<\/span><\/p>\n

The bill defines deadnaming as \u201cto purposefully, and with the intent to disregard the individual\u2019s gender identity or gender expression, refer to an individual by their birth name rather than their chosen name.\u201d <\/span>Another section of the bill requires that any school dress code or uniform \u201cmust not create or enforce any rules based on gender and must allow each student to abide by any variation of the dress code.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The bill also establishes<\/span> a new requirement for public spaces<\/span><\/a>, stating that it is a \u201cdiscriminatory practice and unlawful to, with specific intent to discriminate, publish materials that deadname or misgender an individual.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The “Kelly Loving Act,” has come along at a time when transgender protections are threatened by the Trump administration, which has issued orders to recognize male and female genders only and is attempting to block funding care for transgender children.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Currently,<\/span> two dozen states have banned minors<\/span><\/a> from obtaining some or all aspects of medical care for transgender youths.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Rep. Brianna Titone, an Arvada Democrat and the Legislature\u2019s only transgender member, said: \u201cWhat\u2019s happening at the federal level is casting a long shadow and we don\u2019t know what the future holds. There is a real possibility that gender-affirming care could be at risk. Passing this bill is about telling Coloradans that no, we are not going to let that happen. It\u2019s about taking control of what we can do to ensure that our friends and neighbors and family members continue to get the care they need regardless of what might happen in the future.\u201d<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Rep. Kyle Brown, a Louisville Democrat and the bill\u2019s sponsor, said: \u201cWhat can be created by rules can also be undone. This bill codifies existing standards into statute to provide long-term stability and clarity for patients.\u201d<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The fate of HB25-1312 will be determined by the state Senate. <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Christian college in Colorado is urging lawmakers to reject a controversial bill it says would punish parents and faith communities for living out biblical convictions.\u00a0 The Centennial Institute at Colorado Christian University is speaking out against HB25-1312, a measure that would expand transgender protections and define certain parental behaviors\u2014like referring to a child by…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":516,"featured_media":27160,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27157","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nChristian College Opposes Colorado Bill it Says 'Punishes' Biblical Beliefs<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Colorado Christian University urges lawmakers to reject a bill it says punishes parents and faith 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