Arizona faith and political leaders talk religious freedom and human dignity

• Arizona Supreme Court justice Clint Bolick, House Speaker Rusty Bowers and the Rev. Katie Sexton-Wood of Arizona Faith Network were among the panelists.

State of play: Religion is the source of a lot of conflict, which has only been made worse in the current divisive nature of society, the panelists said.

• There's conflict within and between faiths and there's tension between protecting religious freedoms and other First Amendment rights.

How we stack up: Bolick said that Arizona has even greater protection of religious liberty than the national protection enumerated in the U.S. Constitution.

• Yes, but: He also said the current U.S. Supreme Court has the most expansive view of free exercise of religion of any court in the modern era.

1 big case: The Arizona Supreme Court ruled in 2019 that a Phoenix ordinance that protects LGBTQ people from discrimination cannot be used to force calligraphers to create custom wedding invitations for same-sex couples.

• The ruling was hailed as a victory for religious freedom advocates but was deeply unpopular among others who saw it as a green light for discrimination.
• It created even more tension between religion and civil rights.

1 warning: Panelists of varying faiths encouraged people to stay away from weaponizing religion and pitting it against other freedoms, faiths or sects of the same faith.

What they're saying: "I do believe that there is a moral obligation for religious leaders to kind of have this role of being in the middle," said imam Omar Tawil of the Islamic Community Center of Tempe.

• "The most effective representation of religious liberty is a representation that stands up for people of faith and people of no faith," said elder Michael Dunn of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Get smarter: The LDS church and LGBTQ-rights organizations worked together last year to pass a nondiscrimination ordinance in Mesa that outlawed discrimination based on both religion and sexual orientation.

• "Most people assume we would be enemies, we would be in opposition," said Michael Soto of LQBTQ+ organization Equality Arizona. "But we don't have to choose that. We can choose to come together based on common values as Americans."