Eric Walsh, MD, was hired as the district health director for northwest Atlanta but then fired after a week because of a sermon he delivered as an ordained minister prior to his employment. Here are five things to know:
1. First Liberty Institute filed a lawsuit for Dr. Walsh against the state of Georgia for the termination, claiming it violates freedom of speech and the freedom to exercise religion. The suit also claims the termination violated the freedom from religious discrimination under the Civil Rights Act and equal protection guarantee under the Fourth Amendment.
2. Dr. Walsh is a Seventh Day Adventist Church ordained lay minister and has served on President Obama’s Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS. He previously was director of the public health department in Pasadena, Calif.
3. Dr. Walsh’s sermons have dealt with health, marriage, sexuality, world religions, creationism and God, according to the report. The state asked Dr. Walsh to send over his sermons for critique, which he did. The Georgia Department of Public Health reported Dr. Walsh was fired for “unspecified reasons.”
4. Since he was fired, Dr. Walsh hasn’t been able to find employment.
5. The Georgia Legislature passed a bill in March focused on religious liberty, but the governor vetoed it. The bill would have combined elements of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, a First Amendment Defense Act and Pastor Protection Act.
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