WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that Maine cannot exclude religious schools from a state curriculum. The decision, made by a court that has become extremely receptive to claims by religious people and groups in various contexts, was the latest in a series of rulings requiring the government to support religious institutions on the same terms as other private organizations.
The vote was 6 to 3, with three of the court’s liberal judges against.
The case, Carson v. Makin, No. 20-1088, stems from an unusual program in Maine that requires rural communities without public high schools to organize the education of their young residents in one of two ways. They can sign contracts with nearby public schools or pay for private schooling chosen by their parents, as long as it is, in state law, a “non-sectarian school in accordance with the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.”
Two families in Maine who send or want to send their children to religious schools have challenged the law, saying it violates their right to freedom of religion.
One of the schools in question, the Temple Academy in Waterville, Maine, said it expected its teachers to “integrate biblical principles with their teaching in every subject” and taught students to “spread the word of Christianity.” The other, Bangor Christian Schools, says he seeks to develop “in every student a Christian worldview and Christian philosophy of life.”
The two schools “openly admit to discriminating against homosexuals, people who are transgender and non-Christians,” according to a note from the Maine Supreme Court.
The case was largely similar to that of Montana, decided by a court in 2020, Espinoza v. Montana, Ministry of Revenue. In this case, the court ruled that states should allow religious schools to participate in programs that provide scholarships to students attending private schools.
Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., the majority writer in the Montana case, said a U.S. constitution banning aid to church-run schools runs counter to protecting the U.S. Constitution on the Free Exercise of Religion through Discrimination. against religious people and schools.
“The state should not subsidize private education,” the chief judge wrote. “But once the state decides to do so, it cannot disqualify some private schools just because they are religious.
But the Montana decision focused on the religious status of schools, not their curricula. There may be a difference, Chief Justice Roberts, between the institution’s religious identity and its behavior.
“We acknowledge the issue,” he wrote, “but we don’t need to look at it here.”
The new Maine case has resolved this open question.
The Supreme Court has long held that states may choose to provide assistance to religious schools along with other private schools. The question in the Montana and Maine cases was the opposite: can states refuse to provide such assistance if it is provided to other private schools?
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