The California Supreme Court, which recently struck down prohibitions against same-sex marriage, has now ruled that doctors may not refuse treatment of homosexual patients based on their religious beliefs.

The case involved a woman who was refused fertility treatment by a San Diego clinic because she is a lesbian. The doctors, who are Christians, said they denied her treatment because the woman is unmarried and they are protected under the First Amendment’s free exercise clause. The woman wanted to be inseminated and have a child.

There is a dispute over why the woman was denied treatment. She says it was because of her sexual orientation. The doctors say it was her marital status. If she had married another woman, that would now be legal.

This is where we are headed in America: courts will decide matters of faith and conscience and people will be required to violate their faith or be penalized. Expect more of this in a liberal administration.

Cal Thomas is a nationally syndicated columnist based in Washington, D.C.