A former University of Dallas employee has filed a lawsuit in federal court claiming that he was fired for converting to Catholicism. UD is a Catholic University.

The Dallas Business Journal reports that, “Charles Close, who was the university’s executive director of enrollment management for more than a year and a half, filed a lawsuit against the university last month, alleging religious harassment and age discrimination.”

Close accuses his supervisor, the dean of the College of Business, J. Lee Whittington, of firing him in January, 2007 because he wanted Close to become a member of his nondenominational church.

Bridget Brinn, the attorney with Cantey Hangen LLP in Fort Worth, is representing Close. She is quoted by the DBJ as saying, “he was performing very well as executive director of enrollment management and he’d gotten good feedback. So this came as a big surprise.”

At the time he lost his job, Close was 59-years-old. He alleges that Whittington discovered a book on Catholicism on Close’s work desk in the fall of 2006. His boss criticized him and encouraged him to join his nondenominational church.

Close alleges that in December, Whittington asked him to visit his church, but Close declined the invitation. A month later on Jan. 15 he was fired.

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