Baptist church plant goes to court to rent worship space

HOLLY SPRINGS, Miss. — Religious liberty is at issue in Holly Springs, Miss., where a Southern Baptist church plant has gone to court to rent a worship space downtown.

The city made national headlines by passing a zoning ordinance requiring churches to get approval from 60 percent of local property owners and the mayor before locating on the town square. When Opulent Life Church sought a preliminary injunction, the district court ruled for the city, saying the church’s religious freedom was not in jeopardy since it could meet at its current location at Marshall County Baptist Association.

The church turned to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans. Just 24 hours before a recent court date, Holly Springs overturned the original ordinance, enacting a new rule banning churches altogether from the town square.