{"id":2465902,"date":"2025-07-23T18:55:00","date_gmt":"2025-07-23T22:55:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pastor-says-he-was-fired-from-job-because-he-refused-to-use-trans-pronouns\/"},"modified":"2025-07-23T18:56:03","modified_gmt":"2025-07-23T22:56:03","slug":"pastor-says-he-was-fired-from-job-because-he-refused-to-use-trans-pronouns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pastor-says-he-was-fired-from-job-because-he-refused-to-use-trans-pronouns\/","title":{"rendered":"Pastor Says He Was Fired from Job Because He Refused to Use Trans Pronouns"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fpastor-says-he-was-fired-from-job-because-he-refused-to-use-trans-pronouns%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2465902&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A pastor from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Luke Ash, was fired from his job as a library technician at the East Baton Rouge Parish Library after refusing to use a female co-worker&#8217;s preferred male pronouns. Ash, who is the lead pastor at Stevendale baptist Church, said he was given the library&#8217;s inclusivity policy and asked to use the trainee&#8217;s preferred pronouns but declined, citing his religious beliefs. His dismissal on July 10 sparked support from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-pleads-not-guilty-to-37-charges-in-docs-case\/\" title=\"Trump pleads \u2018Not Guilty\u2019 to 37 charges in docs case\">local religious leaders<\/a>, including Pastor lewis Richerson and more than 30 other pastors who petitioned the library board to reinstate Ash and change the policy that lead to his firing. During a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/attempted-book-bans-surged-in-2022-as-leaders-target-sexual-content-and-critical-race-theory-report\/\" title=\"Attempted book bans surged in 2022 as leaders target sexual content and critical race theory: Report\">library board meeting<\/a>, there was tension as board members insisted comments be limited to agenda items while Ash&#8217;s supporters defended his stance based on their interpretation of scripture, emphasizing their belief in two genders as created by God. Ash expressed that telling the truth according to his faith was the &#8220;loving thing&#8221; despite pressure to conform.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>A pastor in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, said an employer fired him after he refused to call a female co-worker by her preferred male pronouns.<\/p>\n<p>Luke Ash, the lead pastor at Stevendale Baptist Church, said the East Baton Rouge Parish Library fired him on July 10, he told podcast host Tony Perkins on a July 15 episode of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=E_XUq3BLE1s&amp;t=3s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Washington Watch<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Ash, who worked as a library technician, said that on July 7 he and a co-worker were talking about a new female trainee who preferred to go by male pronouns. During the conversation, the co-worker repeatedly corrected Ash.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I refused to use preferred pronouns through the course of conversation,&rdquo; Ash said, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wbrz.com\/news\/man-says-he-was-fired-for-using-improper-pronouns-for-a-co-worker\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WBRZ-TV<\/a> in Baton Rouge. &ldquo;They got back with me on Thursday morning by giving me the dismissal.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The pastor had worked at the library fewer than six months.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">&ldquo;I said, I&rsquo;m not going to lie.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Pastor Luke Ash, Lead Pastor of Stevendale Baptist Church in Baton Rouge, s how he was fired from his job last week at the local library for not using preferred pronouns. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/xZqv8MSr3r\">pic.twitter.com\/xZqv8MSr3r<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Tony Perkins (@tperkins) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/tperkins\/status\/1945240092550774872?\">July 15, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Ash said his employers gave him the chance to call the trainee by her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/white-house-unveils-new-policy-reporters-list-pronouns-media-isnt-happy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">preferred pronouns<\/a>, and that his manager gave him a copy of the library&rsquo;s inclusivity policy, according to WBRZ-TV.<\/p>\n<p>But he refused to bend the knee.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I said, &lsquo;I&rsquo;m not going to lie. I cannot do it,&#8217;&rdquo; Ash told Perkins.<\/p>\n<p>Local <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/exclusive-pastors-expose-modis-agenda-erase-christianity-india\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">pastors<\/a> raised a furor on behalf of Ash during the East Baton Rouge Parish Library Board meeting on Thursday, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wafb.com\/2025\/07\/18\/religious-leaders-clash-with-baton-rouge-library-board-over-employees-firing-pronoun-dispute\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WAFB-TV<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>During the comment portion of the meeting, Pastor Lewis Richerson fervently defended Ash.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We believe there are two genders that God created. So, asking me to affirm something contrary to the Word of God is asking me to violate the text, scripture, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/illinois-might-mandate-teachers-to-embrace-progressive-viewpoints\/\" title=\"Illinois Might Mandate Teachers To \u2018Embrace\u2019 Progressive Viewpoints\">deeply held religious convictions<\/a>,&rdquo; Richerson said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-embed\"> <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/E_XUq3BLE1s?si=1fsw3aGX-r0POpG8\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>Richerson and more than 30 other Louisiana pastors <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/889863139\/Letter-to-East-Baton-Rouge-Parish-Library-Board#from_embed\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">wrote a letter<\/a> to the board, insisting Ash get his job back.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;A group of religious leaders from our parish and around this state requested two things: immediately reinstate Pastor Ash, and two, change your policy that led to his removal,&rdquo; Richerson said at the meeting.<\/p>\n<p>Board President Candace Temple continually interrupted Richerson, saying that Ash&rsquo;s termination was not an agenda item that evening.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Sir, do we need to get security for you? Because you are not following open meeting laws,&rdquo; Temple said.<\/p>\n<p>Board member Darryl Hurst also interrupted Richerson, citing <a href=\"https:\/\/app.lla.state.la.us\/llala.nsf\/baadb2991272084786257ab8006ee827\/%24file\/open%20meetings%20law%20faq.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Louisiana&rsquo;s Open Meetings Law<\/a>, which states that public comments must pertain directly to items on the agenda, WAFB-TV reported.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Germane to the topic, sir. Germane to the topic,&rdquo; Hurst said. &ldquo;Look, I live for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/deep-dive-dismantling-anti-maga-preachers-lies-border-handouts-jesus-free-healthcare\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Jesus<\/a> and love Jesus with all my heart, but you have to stay germane to the topic, sir. If you&rsquo;re not going to respect leadership in here, then we&rsquo;re not going to respect your comment. You are welcome to have a seat.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>In his interview with Perkins, Ash cited the teachings of Jesus.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Jesus said you have to serve God or mammon, and a lot of times there&rsquo;s a fork in the road and we decide to compromise for the sake of mammon,&rdquo; Ash said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;And I think that we&rsquo;re very good at being lawyers to ourselves and deceiving ourselves into saying, &lsquo;You know what? What I&rsquo;m doing is actually the more loving thing. If I just concede on this thing, I&rsquo;m actually being more loving.&rsquo; And I would just say no, the loving thing is to tell the truth,&rdquo; Ash said.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! 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Luke Ash, lead pastor at Stevendale Baptist Church, shared with podcast host Tony Perkins on July 15 that the East Baton Rouge Parish Library terminated his employment on July 10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2465903,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/trans-rally.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[6363,14117,47890],"class_list":["post-2465902","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-fired","tag-pastor","tag-trans-pronouns"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/trans-rally.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2465902","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2465902"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2465902\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2465906,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2465902\/revisions\/2465906"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2465903"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2465902"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2465902"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2465902"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}