Complaint filed with USDA after Wyoming church dropped from food bank partnership

A Wyoming church claims it was the target of religious discrimination after it was dropped from a food bank program in the wake of a controversial sermon. Attorneys for Liberty Counsel, a Christian legal nonprofit organization, filed a religious discrimination complaint with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wednesday on behalf of Foundations for Nations Church, a church located on private property on the Wind River Indian Reservation in central Wyoming.

What does the complaint allege? The church runs a food pantry in Riverton, Wyo., which is adjacent to the reservation, but not on reservation land, according to the complaint. The food pantry typically feeds roughly 2,000 people a month, the complaint says. According to the filing, Food Bank of the Rockies, and its operational hub, Food Bank of Wyoming, dropped the church’s pantry from a partnership on July 7. The complaint alleges that the decision was made days after the organizations sided against the church in an ongoing controversy over a sermon.  A pushback to a clip from the sermon resulted in the Northern Arapaho Business Council demanding that Foundations for Nations Church cease to operate and vacate its reservation land.

What was said in the sermon? The clip that went viral was from a July 5 sermon by Pastor Sarah Lucas in which Lucas criticized elements of a Native American sun dance. The full sermon is no longer available on the Foundations for Nations YouTube channel, but a portion of the sermon has been widely shared on social media. In the clip, Lucas characterized Native Americans as praying to pipes and to ancestors for healing from sickness and addiction. She challenged the practice, arguing for the Biblical view that Jesus Christ is the only source of healing and forgiveness.

“Jesus is the chain-breaker,” she said. “He is the only God that we should be praying to. A pipe cannot hear your prayers. It’s just a piece of material.”

What’s wrong with that? The viral clip drew widespread protests from some members of the local Native American community who felt Lucas disrespected their heritage and beliefs. 

According to Liberty Counsel, Food Bank of the Rockies and Food Bank of Wyoming sided with the demonstrators and cut ties with the church’s food pantry as a result. The organizations, which receive federal funds, did so simply because they object to the church’s stance that salvation comes through faith in Christ alone—a stance held by anyone who believes in Biblical Christianity, according to a statement from Liberty Counsel. The decision to terminate the relationship based on a difference of religious views constitutes religious discrimination, according to the complaint. 

WORLD reached out to both Food Bank of the Rockies and Food Bank of Wyoming for comment. This story will be updated with any response received.

Dig deeper: Listen to my podcast story about the controversy and hear from demonstrators as well as Pastor Sarah Lucas herself. You can also listen to my previous podcast story introducing members of the Wind River Indian Reservation who have come to know Christ.