California high court urged to protect Zen Buddhist monastery Leading legal scholar asks California Supreme Court to protect faith groups from lawsuits with ministers

WASHINGTON – With Becket’s help, a top religious liberty scholar and former president of a Catholic university is urging California’s highest court to protect faith groups from court interference with the internal operations of religious organizations. John Garvey, former president of The Catholic University of America, filed a friend-of-the-court letter yesterday backing the San Francisco Zen Center in its fight against a former monk-in-training who is demanding extra pay for religious duties.

The case, Lorenzo v. San Francisco Zen Center, pits the Buddhist Zen center against a state appeals court ruling that lets judges second-guess how religious groups pay their ministers—a move that clashes with federal protections and drags courts across California into sacred matters. 

“A Buddhist monk in training and a Catholic seminarian aren’t your average 9-5 gigs, and courts shouldn’t treat them as such,” said Eric Rassbach, vice president and senior counsel at Becket. “Federal courts have long recognized that disputes over ministerial compensation invariably drag judges into matters of religious doctrine and practice. California’s ruling runs roughshod over that protection.” 

The letter warns that ignoring these established safeguards would harm Catholic groups and other faith-based organizations, which would force them to defend their spiritual practices in endless lawsuits.  

“Judges and juries have no business refereeing disputes between religious groups and their ministers,” said Rassbach. “Yet the ruling below allows exactly that, pulling courts into religious questions the Constitution says they must leave alone. We hope the court takes this case and ensures religious communities, not courts, remain in charge of their ministers.”  

The Zen Center argues the “ministerial exception”—a longstanding shield for religious independence—should block these pay disputes, just as it does in federal court. Without it, groups face a patchwork of rules depending on where suits are filed, which can lead to confusion and costly legal fights.  

Recent polling from Becket’s 2025 Religious Freedom Index shows broad support for religious groups and organizations to make their own employment and leadership decisions without government interference, with 72% of Americans agreeing with the principle. 

The California Supreme Court is expected to decide whether to take the case by spring.  

For more information or to arrange an interview with a Becket attorney, contact Ryan Colby at [email protected] or 202-349-7219.