God calls us to do everything for His glory (1 Cor. 10:31)
As a Christian, your faith is at the very core of who you are, and it naturally guides your art. You should never have to forsake your beliefs in order to create, even though it seems the culture may be demanding just that. Simply put: you have the freedom to use your God-given creative talents only for projects that are consistent with your religious beliefs, and we are dedicated to helping you protect that freedom.
That’s why we created this publication. We hope that some of the practical steps included inside will be useful as you strive to protect your right to live, work, and create according to your conscience. And we hope you will be encouraged by stories of other creative professionals who are committed to remaining faithful in their work, no matter what.
We have increasingly heard the question, “Can I decline a job if it conflicts with my faith?”
Cities and states across the country have already adopted, or are considering adopting, laws that include categories such as sexual orientation and gender identity within their nondiscrimination laws. Laws that include these categories are devastating for creative professionals who are seeking to live consistent with their Christian convictions.
These laws force Christian creative professionals to make a terrible choice: either use their talents to promote events and messages that violate their faith or follow their faith and face fines or even jail time. In some cases, these laws even make it illegal for them to publically express their religious views.
Alliance Defending Freedom is here to protect the right of creative professionals to use their God-given talents in ways that are consistent with their beliefs.
If you have questions about your rights, we encourage you to download our free resource and call 1-800-835-5233 to speak to an attorney free of charge.
Lorie Smith
Owner of 303 Creative
BelieverGraphic designer
Dog lover
See the Whole Story
Shortly after starting their hand-painting, hand-lettering, and calligraphy business, Joanna and Breanna learned that a Phoenix law bans them from expressing certain religious beliefs and forces them to violate their religious beliefs by promoting events and messages that are contrary to their faith.
Carl and Angel Larsen
Owners of Telescope Media Group
Bible-believing ChristiansVideo & Film Producers
Passionate about Marriage
See the Whole Story
Shortly after starting their hand-painting, hand-lettering, and calligraphy business, Joanna and Breanna learned that a Phoenix law bans them from expressing certain religious beliefs and forces them to violate their religious beliefs by promoting events and messages that are contrary to their faith.
Joanna Duka and Breanna Koski
Owners of Brush & Nib
Sisters in ChristLettering Artist
Avid Painter
See the Whole Story
Shortly after starting their hand-painting, hand-lettering, and calligraphy business, Joanna and Breanna learned that a Phoenix law bans them from expressing certain religious beliefs and forces them to violate their religious beliefs by promoting events and messages that are contrary to their faith.
Blaine Adamson
Owner of Hands On Originals
Follower of ChristGifted Promoter
Loving Husband and Father
See the Whole Story
Shortly after starting their hand-painting, hand-lettering, and calligraphy business, Joanna and Breanna learned that a Phoenix law bans them from expressing certain religious beliefs and forces them to violate their religious beliefs by promoting events and messages that are contrary to their faith.
Barronelle Stutzman
Owner of Arlene’s Flowers
Committed to ChristFloral Mastermind
Grandmother
See the Whole Story
Shortly after starting their hand-painting, hand-lettering, and calligraphy business, Joanna and Breanna learned that a Phoenix law bans them from expressing certain religious beliefs and forces them to violate their religious beliefs by promoting events and messages that are contrary to their faith.
Jack Phillips
Owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop
God-fearing ManCake Designer
Grandfather
See the Whole Story
Shortly after starting their hand-painting, hand-lettering, and calligraphy business, Joanna and Breanna learned that a Phoenix law bans them from expressing certain religious beliefs and forces them to violate their religious beliefs by promoting events and messages that are contrary to their faith.
Breanna and Joanna - Brush & Nib Studio
Case Summary
Shortly after starting their hand-painting, hand-lettering, and calligraphy business, Joanna and Breanna learned that a Phoenix law bans them from expressing certain religious beliefs and forces them to violate their religious beliefs by promoting events and messages that are contrary to their faith. The alternative is to spend up to 6 months in jail and pay as much as $2500 per day for each day that they exercise their rights. Joanna and Breanna filed a lawsuit in Arizona to stop Phoenix from enforcing this harmful law against them. In September 2019, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled in favor of Joanna and Breanna.Other Resources
- Beautiful Things Come From God: Meet Brush & Nib Studio
- Phoenix Law Gives Officials Right to Decide What Is and Isn’t Artistically Acceptable
- Learn the latest on their case. Click here
- See their art. Visit their website: https://www.brushandnib.com/
Blaine Adamson - Hands On Originals
Case Summary
Blaine Adamson, owner of Hands On Originals, is passionate about taking people’s messages and making them better. But when he was asked to print t-shirts with messages promoting a gay pride festival, he had to refer that request to another printer because he could not support the message due to his religious beliefs. The Kentucky Supreme Court ruled in favor of Blaine, unanimously affirming that the Gay and Lesbian Services Organization did not have a legal right to sue Blaine or his business, Hands On Originals, for declining to print a message that violates his religious beliefs.Video
Other Resources
- Win! Kentucky Court Won't Force Christian Printer to Print Messages He Disagrees With
- Learn the latest on the case. Click here
- See his art. Visit his website: https://www.handsonoriginals.com/
Jack Phillips - Masterpiece Cakeshop
Case Summary
Jack Phillips opened Masterpiece Cakeshop in 1993, at which time a local reporter wrote that walking into Jack’s store “is akin to walking into an art gallery of cakes." Over the years, he has frequently turned down requests to promote various messages that conflict with his beliefs, but it wasn’t until someone requested a wedding cake for their same-sex ceremony that he found himself in the cross-hairs of an enforcement action being pursued by the state Civil Rights Commission. ADF represented Jack at the United States Supreme Court. In June 2018, the high court ruled in Jack's favor, finding that the government was wrong to punish Jack for peacefully living out his beliefs in the marketplace.Video
Other Resources
- Same-Sex Marriage Doesn't Affect Anyone? Just Ask Jack Phillips
- Learn the latest on his case. Click here
- See his art. Visit his website: https://masterpiececakes.com/
Barronelle Stutzman - Arlene’s Flowers
Case Summary
After gladly serving and employing homosexual individuals at her floral shop for years, Barronelle graciously declined a request to be the floral artist for a longtime client and friend’s same-sex wedding ceremony because it conflicted with her religious beliefs. After the Washington State Supreme Court ruled against Barronelle a second time, ADF appealed her case back to the U.S. Supreme Court.Video
Other Resources
- 4 Things You Need To Know About Barronelle Stutzman’s Story
- Learn the latest on her case. Click here
- See her art. Visit her website: https://www.arlenesflowers.net/
Carl and Angel Larsen – Telescope Media Group
Case Summary
Carl and Angel Larsen own Telescope Media Group, a video production company that exists to tell great stories that honor God. As Bible-believing Christians, the Larsens want to use their wedding cinematography to reanimate the hearts and minds of people about the goodness of marriage between a man and a woman. But a Minnesota law mandates that if they make films celebrating marriage between one man and one woman, then they must make films celebrating same-sex marriages as well. Penalties for violating the law include substantial fines and up to 90 days in jail. The Larsens have filed a lawsuit seeking a court order that would protect their right to run their business according to their consciences and to avoid government mandates that they promote messages that contradict their beliefs.Video
Other Resources
- See their work. Visit their website: telescopemediagroup.net
Lorie Smith - 303 Creative
Case Summary
Lorie Smith worked in the marketing and design industry for several years until deciding she wanted greater freedom to use her artistic talents as she sees fit – to promote messages and events that are consistent with her faith. So, she opened 303 Creative, her own graphic and web design company. Lorie’s goal has always been to publicly honor and glorify God through the work she does, which means she is is selective about the projects she takes on because she speaks through her artistic design work. Knowing that speech is transformative and believing that our culture needs a serious change in its view of marriage, Lorie desires to use her artistic talents and business to publicly proclaim and celebrate God’s design for marriage as a union between one man and one woman. But a Colorado law would force her to create websites celebrating marriages that violate her deeply held religious beliefs if she creates websites celebrating one-man, one-woman marriages. The law even bars her from expressing her religious views about marriage on her website. ADF filed a lawsuit on Lorie’s behalf asking a Colorado court to prevent government officials from enforcing the law against Lorie so she can run her business consistently with her faith without fear of government punishment.Other Resources
Frequently Asked Questions
Question: What makes this different from the injustices of the civil rights era?
Question: What is a pre-enforcement challenge?
Download your FREE copy of Create Freely
We have created a publication specifically for creative professionals to help you protect your right to create freely and glorify God through your work.
Included in this publication:
- Find out what it means to “create freely”
- Read about other creative professionals fighting to remain faithful in their work
- Learn practical steps you can take to protect yourself as a creative professional