In an article recently published in RealClearReligion titled, “The Supreme Court Unanimously Protects Religious Foster Agencies” the significance of the Supreme Court’s decision in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia is discussed by one of the foremost litigators and experts of religious freedom in the United States today, Mark Rienzi. Rienzi is an RFI FORIS scholar, professor of law at The Catholic University of America,  and president of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. In the Fulton case, Becket—a leading law firm that litigates religious liberty cases—successfully represented foster parents who partner with Catholic Social Services (CSS) of Philadelphia all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Rienzi argues that foster children, foster parents, and social harmony all benefit when the religious freedom of institutions is protected. The Fulton decision, Rienzi contends, serves the well-being of vulnerable children in the City of Philadelphia as well as the cause of religious free exercise.

First, this decision serves children in need of foster care:

The Supreme Court’s unanimous decision shows that we are still capable of live-and-let-live solutions. As a result, it will be easier for foster children across the country to find loving homes. …[F]aith-affirming agencies nationwide no longer need to fear government sanction for serving all children in need consistent with their sincere religious beliefs.

Second, Rienzi explains how the unanimous decision upholds religious liberty:

The Supreme Court’s decision is also a major victory for religious freedom and for religious minorities in particular. The Court made clear that when the government has discretion, it can’t use that discretion to crack down on religious exercise – at least not without a compelling reason. Put simply, the Supreme Court mandated a rule of fairness: the government must treat religious exercise at least as well as it treats other sorts of secular activity. 

Rienzi concludes:

We live in contentious times. But the court’s unanimous decision reminds us that we also have constitutional guardrails that help us all to live together in harmony and work together for the common good – even when we disagree about important matters. Before this case, the city and the church had cooperated together to find loving homes for children in need. Thanks to the First Amendment and a unanimous court, they can now get back to that important work.

Read the full article here: The Supreme Court Unanimously Protects Religious Foster Agencies