>
> By Valerie Richardson
> THE WASHINGTON TIMES
>
> DENVER - A Christian mother is appealing a judge's decision that
> prohibits her from teaching her daughter that homosexuality is wrong.
> Cheryl Clark, who left a lesbian relationship in 2000 after converting
> to Christianity, was ordered by Denver County Circuit Judge John Coughlin to
> "make sure that there is nothing in the religious upbringing or teaching
> that the minor child is exposed to that can be considered homophobic."
> Dr. Clark filed her appeal with the Colorado Court of Appeals last week.
> Her former lover, Elsey McLeod, was awarded joint custody of the child,
> an 8-year-old girl who is Dr. Clark's daughter by adoption.
> The case has raised red flags among some Christians, who say the
> decision infringes upon the mother's right to freedom of expression and
> religion.
> While custody cases involving homosexual parents are becoming more
> common, the Denver decision goes beyond previous court orders, said Mathew
> Staver, president of Liberty Counsel, a public-interest law firm based in
> Orlando, Fla.
> "We've seen cases around the country where the court will order one
> parent not to say anything negative about the other spouse's lifestyle, but
> this goes much further than anything we've seen," said Mr. Staver, whose
> firm specializes in constitutional issues involving marriage.
> Mr. Staver said he filed a friend-of-the-court brief last month with the
> Colorado Court of Appeals at the request of Dr. Clark's attorney and that
> the order effectively prevents the mother from practicing her religion in
> her daughter's presence.
> "The mother is a Christian, and that's a major part of her lifestyle,"
> he said. "She would be prohibited from reading her daughter Romans 1 or
> anything in the Bible on sexual fidelity in marriage, going to Bible study,
> or listening to a sermon on marriage or fidelity."
> Mr. Staver said he has acted as a spokesman for Dr. Clark, a physician,
> and her attorney, who have avoided speaking directly to the media. Miss
> McLeod's attorney, Gina Weitzenkorn, said the case has been put under seal
> and would not comment.
> A spokeswoman for the Lambda Legal Defense Fund, a homosexual rights
> advocacy group, declined to comment, saying she was unaware of the case.
> Judge Coughlin, who issued his ruling April 28, did award Dr. Clark sole
> responsibility for the girl in the area of religion, although with the
> caveat about exposing the child to anything "homophobic."
> He also said the two women "will never be able to agree regarding the
> religious upbringing of the minor child."
> Mr. Staver pointed out that the judge gave no similar orders to Miss
> McLeod regarding remarks or teaching about Christianity or Christians. "It's
> a real one-way street on this," he said.
> In his order, the judge said there was "a great deal of strife" between
> the two women. Dr. Clark had argued that Miss McLeod should not have joint
> custody because she was not interested in the adoption while it was taking
> place and that it was never their intention that she would act as a parent.
> "Elsey never adopted this child. It's an egregious situation because the
> court is giving custody to someone who is not related to the child and has
> not adopted the child," Mr. Staver said.
> The girl spent more than seven years as part of Miss McLeod's life,
> however, prompting Judge Coughlin to rule it would be in the best interest
> of the child for joint parenting to continue.
> If his ruling stands, it could affect Christian parents across the
> nation, said Mr. Staver. "These things progressively build on one another,
> so we're trying to stop this before it goes any further."
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