Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey bluntly pushed again Friday on activist atheists upset about an evangelical worship occasion at state-owned Auburn University and the three coaches who supported the occasion.

“We will not be intimidated by out-of-state interest groups dedicated to destroying our nation’s religious heritage,” Ms. Ivey, a Republican, wrote to the Freedom from Religion Foundation’s co-presidents, Annie Laurie Gaylor and Dan Barker. “Please understand that our state motto is, ‘We dare defend our rights.’”

“We should be more welcoming, not less, to expressions of faith, and society would be worse off were we to purge religion from our public institutions,” added Ms. Ivey, a Baptist.

Sen. Tommy Tuberville, Alabama Republican and former soccer coach at Auburn, mentioned on X he was “happy to be criticized for being ‘overly prayerful.’”

The Wisconsin-based atheist group despatched a “warning letter” to Auburn after the Sept. 12 “Unite Auburn” occasion drew nationwide consideration for a spontaneous mass baptism through which about 200 college students have been immersed as an indication of their non secular dedication.

Auburn soccer coach Hugh Freeze, who succeeded Mr. Tuberville, baptized certainly one of his soccer gamers in a small lake about half a mile from the worship venue. Mr. Freeze was the soccer coach at Liberty University, America’s largest evangelical Christian faculty, and is thought for sharing his Christian testimony.

The Freedom from Religion Foundation, which claims a mission “to protect” church-state separation, objected to Mr. Freeze’s position within the baptisms and mentioned it acquired “numerous reports” that he, Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl and baseball coach Butch Thompson “actively promoted” the occasion to college students.

Mr. Pearl is Jewish, however basis legal professional Chris Line mentioned through e-mail Friday that “he still entangles his religion with his program” as a result of final 12 months he led a gaggle of athletes on a tour of Israel the place “players are going to see their Judeo-Christian roots.”

Mr. Line initially mentioned in an e-mail to The Washington Times that Mr. Pearl “baptised” college students on that journey, however later conceded “there is no evidence as far as I am aware he personally baptized” anybody.

Mr. Line this month despatched the same warning letter to Snead State Community College President Joe Whitmore, after a report that he has supplied prayers earlier than meals and at workers occasions. Snead, in Boaz, Alabama, was based as a non secular faculty, Ms. Ivey famous in her letter.

“The facts described in your recent letters do not violate anyone’s religious liberty,” the governor wrote. “Even in accordance with your personal account, these occasions all concerned adults interacting with different adults, and nobody confronted any menace of antagonistic penalties for declining to take part.

“Requiring college officials to entirely remove faith from their lives could well violate those officials’ own religious freedom. After all, the First Amendment protects the free exercise’ of religion just as much as it prohibits government establishment of religion.”

Mr. Line responded to Ms. Ivey’s letter in an e-mail to The Washington Times: “It is disappointing but not surprising that Governor Kay Ivey would side with proselytizing coaches and administrators over Alabama’s students and the law.” He promised the group would ship a proper response to the governor.

Jennifer Wood Adams, government director of public affairs for Auburn University President Christopher Roberts, mentioned Friday that the college acquired the letter from the Freedom from Religion Foundation and is evaluating it. “We have no further comment at this time,” she mentioned.

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