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"I will not deny that there are cities out there that are very closed…against churches," he said. "But Lake Elsinore is absolutely not one of those cities."

McClendon agrees that if the issue continues in the courts, it could have a wide effect on the interactions between houses of worship and local governments.

"The impact for other churches and religious schools and things of that sort, I think, would be significant, obviously, because the Congress was elevating the siting of religious institutions to the level of a civil right," he said.

"There's no question but that the issue will ultimately reach the Supreme Court."

Copyright © 2003 Religion News Service

More coverage of the ruling is available from the North County Times, ChurchCentral.com, and Charisma News Service.

Earlier Christianity Today coverage of RLUIPA and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act includes:

No Religion-Based Zoning | Illinois Vineyard church wins right to worship in its own building (May 13, 2003)

Churches vs. Homeowners | Legal experts assess last week's appeals court decision that houses of worship may be "incompatible with a place of quiet seclusion." (Oct. 23, 2002)

Feds Intervene in Zoning Case | Elsinore Christian Center seeks to relocate into commercial zone (Oct, 3, 2001)

President Signs Religious-Liberty Bill | Law says government must again prove "compelling interest" to curb free exercise of religion in land use, prisons, and hospitals (Sept. 26, 2000)

The End of Church Zoning Disputes? (Sept. 4, 2000)

Religious Liberty Bill's Passage Uncertain (July 12, 1999)

States Pass New Protections for Religious Expression (Jan. 11, 1999)

Religious Liberty Bill Stalls (Oct. 5, 1998)

New Religious Liberty Bill Unveiled (Aug. 10, 1998)

RFRA Coalition Frays in Wake of Ruling (Aug. 11, 1997)

Supreme Court Ruling Due on Church Expansion Dispute (Apr. 28, 1997)

New Cases Test Limits of Religious Freedom (Oct. 7, 1996)

Religious Freedom Is No Luxury | By killing RFRA, the Supreme Court has placed religious liberty in a perilous position. (Editorial, Sept. 1, 1997)

Your Church, a Christianity Today sister publication, also examined RLUIPA's implications for churches.

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July (Web-only) 2003, Vol. 47