Religious Liberty Hits Home: Randall Wenger
Religious liberty isn’t just a topic for scholars or lawyers — it’s something that touches everyday life. It matters when a business owner faces pressure to go against their faith. It matters when a worker is told they have to choose between their job and their religious convictions. And that’s exactly why the work of Randall Wenger, Chief Counsel at the Independence Law Center in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, deserves attention.
On a recent episode of the Cedarville Stories podcast, Randy shared how his legal work — and his deep personal commitment to religious freedom — have shaped not only court decisions but the lives of ordinary Americans.
Take the Conestoga Wood Specialties Corp. v. Burwell case. A family-owned woodworking business in Pennsylvania faced steep fines for refusing to provide abortion-inducing drugs in their employee healthcare plan — something that went directly against their Christian beliefs. Randy helped take their case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. The ruling in their favor didn’t just protect one family — it affirmed that people of faith don’t have to set their convictions aside when they run a business.
Then there’s Groff v. DeJoy. Gerald Groff, a postal worker, had faithfully kept Sundays as a day of rest and worship. But the Postal Service kept scheduling him anyway — until he felt forced to resign. With Randy’s help, that case also reached the Supreme Court. The Court sided with Groff, strengthening the right of all workers to seek religious accommodation on the job.
These victories are more than legal milestones — they’re reminders that religious liberty is not an abstract principle. It protects real people in real situations across the country.
On the podcast, Randy spoke not just as a lawyer but as a father — one who’s seen his own children grow in faith at Cedarville University. His message was clear: If we want to pass on a country where faith is free to flourish, we need to defend it now.
Because religious liberty isn’t just a legal issue — it’s a human one.
Posted in: Podcast