Dr. Land “pray[s] the court rules against St. Isidore.” But his take on the case is deeply misguided. #Charterschools #FirstAmendment #StIsidore #religiousfreedom
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iStock/Valeriy_GIn a recent Christian Post column, Dr. Richard Land wrote about an upcoming Supreme Court case concerning the fate of a Catholic charter school in Oklahoma known as St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School. Alliance Defending Freedom, the organization I work for, represents the Oklahoma agency that approved the school’s participation in the state’s charter school program. Dr. Land “pray[s] the court rules against St. Isidore.” But his take on the case is deeply misguided.
The Supreme Court has been clear in three cases over the last eight years that when a state creates a generally available public program and invites private groups to participate, it violates the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment to exclude religious organizations. Such religious discrimination is “odious” to our Constitution, the court has said.
