When will the madness stop?

During the last session of the Texas Legislature, it was the bathroom bill of 2017 - flushed, thankfully, in the waning days of the session.

But this year's absurdity is 10 times worse than the bathroom bill. The featured act before the 2019 Legislature is much more personal.

It's the "God doesn't approve of you!" bill.

All Texans must work urgently together for the immediate defeat of Texas Senate Bill 17 and its House companion, HB 2827, which would enshrine into law state-sanctioned discrimination - for whatever religious reason you choose to cite against your neighbor.

If this bill becomes law, if you go to see a doctor, or you call a plumber -- or if your teacher doesn't "approve" of your child -- all the state license holder has to say is, "God doesn't want me to provide you with service," and there would, effectively, be no recourse for you.

SB 17 would bar state license-granting agencies from denying or stripping professional licenses for conduct "based on a sincerely held religious belief" of the applicant or license-holder.

We should all be thankful that SB 17 sponsor Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, approved an amendment to his bill that would exempt first responders from claiming the religious freedom exemption while executing their tax-supported public duties.

Good to know that if my house was burning down, the local fire department would have to extinguish the flames, or if my local bank was being robbed, the police would have to respond even though it's in the gayborhood.

Perry and supporters of the bill say they have the right to have their personal interpretations of biblical scripture become law -- regardless of who might be harmed and, yes, separation of church and state be damned.

"It's not about the here and now," Perry said. "It's about where we're all going to spend our eternity."

A 19th century fresco of Jesus healing the sick in St. George's church in Antwerp (Getty Images)

But what's holy to bill supporters in the here-and-now is that anyone called before a state licensure board should be able to cite their religious beliefs as a defense against losing their licenses.

Their bottom line: The state of Texas should sanction discrimination against a member of the LGBTQ community, the Muslim neighbor, the tattooed co-worker sitting next to you (anyone, really) -- so license-holding professionals won't lose their livelihoods since their interpretation of the Bible is all that matters.

"It's not licensing discrimination at any level," Perry insisted to his Senate colleagues earlier this month. "Your skin color is still protected."

Thankfully, Sen. Borris Miles, D-Houston, and others weren't fooled.

"You know that saying, 'You can put lipstick on a pig?'" Miles said. "Sen. Perry, this is a discrimination bill."

Sen. Juan Hinojosa, D-McAllen, said the bill would effectively mean that the Texas state government was using its authority to give professionals the right to discriminate against anyone they pleased, as long as they cite a religious belief as an excuse.

The Texas Senate approved the bill on April 3, and it now goes to the Texas House of Representatives' State Affairs Committee.

Just like last year when it came to the bathroom bill, Texas business interests like Google and Apple and local chambers of commerce, along with LGBTQ advocates and others, are lining up to shut down this latest attempt by the extremists in Austin.

As a person of faith and as a pastor, I urge all Texans to contact their local representatives, both House and Senate members, to register their opposition to these bills. Together, we can stop the madness.

And, let me be crystal clear about this fact: God loves you just the way you are.

The Rev. Neil G. Cazares-Thomas is the senior pastor of Cathedral of Hope of Dallas, a member congregation of the United Church of Christ. He wrote this column for The Dallas Morning News.