Why June Could be Decisive for Religious Freedom and the Future of the Nation’s Highest Court

Written by Jorge Gomez

June could be a critical month for religious freedom in America like never before. Over the next few weeks, the U.S. Supreme Court is likely to release most of the decisions for its current term—including cases in which First Liberty is fighting to defend people of faith and religious organizations.

Below, we’ll recap several First Amendment cases pending before the nation’s highest court and how the outcome in each of these could be a turning point for the constitutional freedoms of millions of Americans.

Beyond keeping an eye on the Court’s religious freedom cases and rulings, we’re also vigilant of the far Left’s threat to stage a Supreme Coup, a plot to stack the Court with activist justices and turn our nation’s independent judiciary into their political puppet.

Let’s dive deeper into what’s happening at the U.S. Supreme Court and why the coming weeks could be decisive for the future of America’s judicial system.

Religious Freedom Rundown: Key Cases Affecting Your First Freedom

Beginning in October of 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court reviewed and heard multiple cases throughout this term that directly affect religious liberty. In its upcoming decisions on these cases, the Court has a prime opportunity to reaffirm Americans’ First Freedom:

• Fulton v. Philadelphia

At issue: Whether faith-based adoption agencies will be permitted to continue helping children while operating in accordance with biblical teachings. First Liberty filed an amicus (friend-of-the-court) brief in this case, supporting Catholic Social Services.

• Americans For Prosperity v. Becerra

At Issue: Whether California can force non-profit organizations to release sensitive information to the state, such as the name and personal information of donors. First Liberty filed an amicus brief supporting the humanitarian organization Citizen Power Initiatives for China—for which the issue of donor privacy is a matter of life and death.

The Court could also decide whether to hear two other cases in its next term:

• Maine School Choice Case

At Issue: Whether a state can exclude students who choose religious schools from its tuition assistance program. First Liberty and the Institute for Justice petitioned the Supreme Court to take the case, arguing:

“States should not be permitted to withhold an otherwise available education benefit simply because a student would make the private and independent choice to use that benefit to procure an education that includes religious instruction.”

• North American Mission Board Case

At Issue: Whether religious organizations can make operational decisions free of government interference. First Liberty asked the Court to reaffirm that religious institutions—not judges or government officials—have the constitutional right to choose how and who will fulfill their religious missions.

When looking at these cases, the good news is that over the course of the last seventy (70) years, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of religion fifty-eight percent (58%) of the time. That’s nearly three (3) in every five (5) cases involving religion that had a pro-religious freedom outcome!

While these statistics and data can’t offer a complete guarantee of more victories, they do provide a sense of optimism that we can still look to the nation’s highest court as a protector of our First Freedom and God-given rights.

Threats to Pack the Court if Cases Don’t Go the Left’s Way

As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to bring its current term to an end, a growing number of Democratic Senators do not appear at all happy about the prospective outcome of how the Court will rule on many constitutional issues.

Referencing the Court’s recent decision to review an abortion case, as well as criticizing the Court’s conservative-leaning justices, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) stated in an interview:

“It will inevitably fuel and drive an effort to expand the Supreme Court if this activist majority betrays fundamental constitutional principles…It’s already driving that movement…Chipping away at Roe v. Wade will precipitate a seismic movement to reform the Supreme Court.”

We don’t have to read too deep between the lines to uncover that for the Left, the ends justify the means, at any cost. If the result is beneficial to their political agenda, they won’t hesitate to drive a stake right through the heart of the most respected judicial institution in the world.

In essence, this boils down to Leftist activists and their allies in Congress showing they’re willing to overthrow the Court’s judicial independence and our constitutional system of “checks and balances” if cases don’t go their way.

And that’s just the radical response we’ve seen to the Court announcing it will review one case, on a single issue. Imagine the court-packing uproar that could ensue if the Court officially rules on multiple cases and does so in a way that favors religious liberty.

Send Him Packing? Justice Breyer Responds to Effort to Ouster Him from the Bench

Not only are the calls to pack the Court growing more intense, there’s a push right now to oust Justice Stephen Breyer from his spot on the bench so it can be filled with a more liberal-leaning justice.

However, in the face of mounting pressure for Breyer to retire, the Justice had to give court-packing advocates a Constitution 101 lesson, that the judiciary isn’t a tool for their political gain. In his most recent book, Justice Breyer warned:

“Proposals have been recently made to increase the number of Supreme Court justices…think long and hard before embodying those changes in law…A judge’s loyalty is to the rule of law…not the political party that helped to secure his or her appointment.”

With President Biden’s commission already in full swing and Democrats pushing harder than ever before to ram through their court expansion bill, the clock is ticking, and there’s no time to waste if we are to save our nation’s judiciary.

It’s up to us—We The People—to preserve the integrity of America’s Constitution and the world’s most revered judicial system. Will you Join First Liberty in exposing the Left’s radical coup to bring U.S. citizens under their tyrannical authority and policies?

This article was originally published at FirstLiberty.org.