SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — California State University, San Bernardino, has barred a Christian student group from organizing on campus because it would discriminate against non-Christians and homosexuals.

As in similar disputes on other campuses, the Christian Student Association's proposed constitution included a sexual morality statement and required that members and officers be Christians.

The university said it acted under a section of California's education code that says public university student groups cannot exclude people on the basis of religion or sexual orientation.

Ryan Sorba, a student who tried to form the association, accused the university of discrimination against Christians. "This is about whether the First Amendment is allowed to exist at Cal State San Bernardino and whether or not Christians are allowed to exist," he said.

The Alliance Defense Fund of Scottsdale, Ariz., has sued the California State campuses at Long Beach and San Diego, saying the system forces students to abandon Christian beliefs to obtain benefits other organizations receive, such as funding from student fees and permission to post fliers and meet in university rooms.