Tempers flare at Supreme Court over religious liberty case

Washington Examiner ^ | 04/19/2017 | Ryan Lovelace

[HiTech RedNeck]

Once we have socialism it is a question about what part churches should have in it.

I’d advise churches to go easy here. Scandal can be caused that obscures a church’s heavenly mission.

[NutsOnYew]

the preschool might choose to provide religious instruction to the children "outside on a sunny day" on the playground resurfaced with government funding.

What a maroon!

The Wise Latina thinks religious cooties will jump off the children unto the gubmint cement and contaminate it.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Caesar pretty well gets to choose where his benevolences go. That said, Sotomayer has made mountains out of molehills. It would be like saying no publicly paved street might have the gospel preached on it. That falls under free exercise and free speech.

[Pollster1]

Missouri's Constitution includes a provision that prevents public funds from directly or indirectly assisting any church, sect or religion.

1. It's Missouri, they can amend the Constitution if they want. (2) If they don't change the Constitution, the legislature should eliminate all forms of public spending disbursed in a manner that directly or indirectly discriminates against any church, sect or religion.

[HiTech RedNeck]

I expect to see a “significant religion blind public purpose” criterion applied in the end. The religious part is de minimis here.

That said if Missouri won’t pave a parochial playground I could think of far worse hindrances to church missions. This isn’t the hill to die on.

[Mercat]

Actually Kegan sounded like she was in favor of the church’s position.

[Bubba Ho-Tep]

No one’s talking about this being a federalism case where someone is suing in federal court in order to force a state to give them money in violation of state law.

[sauropod]

Bkmk

[lizma2]

How about the almost billion federal dollars given to church groups to resettle muslim refugees to the USA???????

[odawg]

The Humanist Manifesto, adopted and supported by the government educational bureaucracy since its first version in 1933, calls for the removal of Christianity from public education. That definitely is not separation of church and state.

The parents of the students who attend those type schools pay the same taxes as everyone else.

[free-in-nyc]

Will the government deny me social security benefits because I might give some of them to the church I attend????

If Hillary had been elected, I believe that argument would have eventually been made.

[drop 50 and fire for effect]

IMHO, the problem here is not about religious schools vs public schools. The question here is should the Fed or State government, be funding playgrounds? Books, classrooms, teachers, computers.

Sports, music, playgrounds.....have a bake sale, beg from rich people. It is a local issue.

That is a policy question for the people of the sovereign State of Missouri to decide either directly or through duly elected representatives.

The problem is, if they choose to do so, the Federal Constitution mandates that they must be religiously neutral, instead they actively discriminate against religious schools.

[yefragetuwrabrumuy]

Senator Grassley, not a glib individual, said that there were rumors of a court retirement as early as this June.

So, of the likely candidates, there is Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Steven Breyer, and Anthony Kennedy.

Who is it going to be is the $64 question.

[SauronOfMordor]

Religious organizations are getting federal contracts to resettle refugees. Lets terminate that under the “separation of church and state” doctrine.

[Vlad The Inhaler]

The question here is should the Fed or State government, be funding playgrounds?

Whatever they do should be done equitably and without discrimination.

.

[tbw2]

Liberals twist the Constitutional separation of religion and government to say there will not be a state religion to mean the state must discriminate against religious groups.
Ironically, they use federal funds to build mosques abroad as “outreach” and teaching Islam in a positive manner in the public schools.

[zeugma]

Reading through the transcripts on this was actually kind of interesting. I didn't see any big flaring of tempers as described in the article. Breyer actually had a really interesting line of questioning to the attorney representing the state. You can't really read too much into oral arguments, because a lot of it is, as Justice Thomas calls it, "theater", but I thought there were even some valid questioning by Kagen, and Ginsberg. I'll be interested in reading whatever decisions come out of the case. (There appears to be some small chance that the court will actually punt on it as well).

For those interested in reading it for yourself, as opposed to some folks begging for clicks, you can go here for the transcripts.

All Oral Argument transcripts can be found here

[octex]

First and only time I’ve ever clicked on the WashExam link. I was interested to read the whole story, but the ads almost locked up my PC and my ISP had to reboot the browser. Never again!

[Sacajaweau]

A playground is not a function of a Religion but totally secular in nature. Of course they should get funding.