I received the latest issue of Church & State today. It’s a publication of Americans United for the Separation of Church & State, an organization which should not even have to exist, but alas, it is sorely needed.
The lead article is about a challenge that Americans United, along with other usual suspects like the ACLU, is bringing against the State of Oklahoma for chartering a religious public school.
There may have been another era in our history when such a challenge was likely to be unsuccessful, but I tend to doubt it. In point of fact, there’s never been a time, at least not in my lifetime, when the idea of funding a religious school would be seriously advocated by any politician, so the case was unlikely to arise. I could be wrong about that latter point, but I’ve no doubt that if some legislature, likely in the South, ever tried such a thing it would have been struck down by the courts.
Today is a different story. My guess is that the supreme court (it just doesn’t deserve capital letters) will uphold the law, using a specious argument, of course, but as they’ve demonstrated, speciousness is perfectly fine when they engage in it. The challenge will come when they have to find a rationale for allowing legislatures to pick and choose among the religions they choose to establish. Once the court upholds the Oklahoma law there’s no doubt that religions other than right wing professed Christians (professed, since they don’t agree with Christ on just about anything) will step forward and demand some of that money. How will the court justify withholding funding from Muslims, Jews, Rastafarians, Satanists, and Pastafarians, many of whom will surely put their hands out either because they actually want the money or wish to expose the hypocrisy.
But have no fear, the Supreme Court will find a way. The only constitutional amendment that they can’t find a way around is the Second, though even in that case they must ignore the introductory clause.
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