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S5, Ep. 03: SCOTUS is fixated on history. What’s prayer got to do with it?

S5, Ep. 03: SCOTUS is fixated on history. What’s prayer got to do with it?

FromRespecting Religion


S5, Ep. 03: SCOTUS is fixated on history. What’s prayer got to do with it?

FromRespecting Religion

ratings:
Length:
39 minutes
Released:
Oct 26, 2023
Format:
Podcast episode

Description

Has the Supreme Court abandoned the Establishment Clause test for some sort of “history” test when applying the law? Today, we’re looking at a 2014 Supreme Court case that continues to have major implications on Supreme Court decisions: Greece v. Galloway. Amanda and Holly review this sharply divided decision on legislative prayer, explore the differences in the prayer practice of Congress and the practice in local town meetings, and look at the ongoing impact of this decision, including how it was used in the Kennedy v. Bremerton ruling in 2022.    SHOW NOTES Segment 1 (starting at 00:51): What’s the difference between legislative prayer and prayer at local town meetings?  Amanda and Holly discuss the decision in Kennedy v. Bremerton on episode 21 of season 3. Learn more about Greece v. Galloway on our page dedicated to the case, available at this link. It includes a link to our friend-of-the-court brief and other resources. BJC’s Nan Futrell Liles wrote about the constitutional anomaly in the 1983 case of Marsh v. Chambers in this column from 2013: A legal look at local government prayer   Segment 2 (starting at 20:56): The decision and the dissent in Greece v. Galloway Read Justice Anthony Kennedy’s decision in Greece v. Galloway and Justice Elena Kagan’s dissent at this link.   Segment 3 (starting at 30:41): The problems with this new ‘history’ test Read the Kennedy v. Bremerton opinion and dissent at this link. Amanda and Holly mentioned two recent disputes about prayer in local government meetings. Here are news articles covering them: Alabama: Anti-LGBTQ comments in Mobile raise questions about prayer before public meetings by John Sharp for AL.com Connecticut: Enfield school board meetings no longer begin with prayer following complaint by Susan Danseyar and Eric Bedner for CT Insider. Respecting Religion is made possible by BJC’s generous donors. You can support these conversations with a gift to BJC. 
Released:
Oct 26, 2023
Format:
Podcast episode

Titles in the series (100)

What's at stake for faith freedom for all in our world today? Join the conversation on religion and the law, including the most significant cases concerning religion and religious liberty at the U.S. Supreme Court and the continuing impact of Christian nationalism. As lawyers and people of faith, BJC Executive Director Amanda Tyler and General Counsel Holly Hollman think these topics deserve respectful conversation -- something that we don’t always hear in the public square or our social media feeds.