July 11, 2020
Quick Hit Quartet
SCOTUS Wrap-Up
The latest term of the Supreme Court wrapped up on Thursday. This session was marked with by some landmark cases for religious liberty, including Bostock v.Clayton County, June Medical Services v. Russo, and Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morissey-Berru. I’ve written about Bostock and June Medical in the last two editions of The Prospectus (read here and here).
Guadalupe concerns a suit between a former teacher of the Los Angeles Our Lady of Guadalupe School and the school itself. Ms. Morissey-Berru was a 5th- and 6th-grade teacher at the struggling Catholic school when the school, under the leadership of a new principal, updated and revised its teaching methods for reading and writing. Ms. Morrisey- Berru was unwilling to implement the new methods, and her contract was not renewed. Because of the Catholic affiliation of the school, Ms. Morrisey-Berru was a certified Catechist and religious instructor. Each subject she taught was influenced by the Catholic faith.
After her contract was not renewed, Ms. Morissey-Berru sued the school for wrongful termination, citing age discrimination. A federal judge then ruled with the school, but Ms. Morissey-Berru appealed. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals then ruled in favor of Ms. Morissey-Berru. The case was then argued in front of the Supreme Court, who ruled in favor of the school 7-2, with Justice Samuel Alito writing the opinion, in which Chief Justice John Roberts, Justices Clarence Thomas, Stephen Breyer, Elena Kagan, Neil Gorsuch, and Brett Kavanaugh joined. Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented, in which Justice Ruth Bader-Ginsburg joined.
Why does this case matter to Christians? The majority of the Court ruled in favor of the school, upholding the ministerial exception, or the ecclesasitical exception. The ministerial exception, explained in 2012’s Hosanna-Tabor case draws from the First Amendment to protect the freedom of religious groups to choose their own ministers and prevent government involvement in ecclesiastical matters.
In Guadalupe, Ms. Morrisey-Berru was considered a minister because she was teaching the Catholic faith to children in accordance with the local Catholic parish. Each year, her contract was approved by a parish priest. This case gives further protections to churches and schools who seek to hire staff that in accordance with their doctrine and mission without fear of government interference. The government cannot preside over or interfere with the hiring practices of schools that are tied to churches or churches themselves. The Supreme Court’s ruling is a win for religious liberty and Christian institutions.
NCAA Football
The Big 10 Conference has chosen to participate only in conference match-ups for all of its sports in the fall, including football. This decision comes after the Ivy League—which is not, I would say, influential in collegiate athletics—decided on Wednesday to cancel all fall sports this year.
The Big 10’s decision to cancel all non-conference sporting events will no doubt have an influence on other conferences, such as the ACC, SEC, and Big 12. Be looking for continuous changes in collegiate fall sports schedules and participation as we get closer to the fall semester.
COVID-19
COVID-19 cases are still on the rise around the nation. This week saw 2 days with over 60,000 new cases in the U. S., shattering our previous record. More testing has become available, leading to higher numbers, but the virus is quickly spreading in Texas, Florida, California, Arizona, and Georgia. Each state is handling the reopening response differently, with some opting to extend stay-at-home measures and some slowing their reopening. Mandated mask requirements are now widespread.
President Donald Trump has indicated that another round of a stimulus package would be approved by the Executive branch. Expect the updated package to be discussed when Congress is back in session on July 20.
Trump’s Speech
Last Friday (7/3), President Donald Trump gave an Independence Day speech at Mount Rushmore. The speech was met with much vitriol and backlash from the mainstream media, who lauded the speech as “dark” and “exploiting social divisions” and digging “deeper into America’s division.” One would expect this speech to be filled with hateful rhetoric and pungent shot-taking.
But let us go ad fontes, to the source, and see for ourselves. The remarks made by the President (which can be read in full here), are actually a reflection on the Founders and their vision for the United States. While President Trump is keen on going off of his manuscript to attack his opponents ad hominem, he appears to have remained level-headed and patriotic throughout this speech. The speech served as a reminder of the great accomplishments throughout America’s history, from the founding itself to the moon landing, to the abolition of slavery and more. Throughout the speech, President Trump reflected on the greatness of the American project, which has produced great men like Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Roosevelt. The general tone of the speech was victorious and patriotic.
While President Trump did take time in the speech to condemn rioters and those who would tear down monuments of presidents, the occasion of the speech merited a reflection of the great history of America. The lesson we can take from this is to always check the sources themselves. Be wary of listening to commentary on a speech without also reading or listening to the speech itself. In this case, the media unfairly represented the speech. The truth matters, and is often hiding behind false or misrepresentative headlines.
Book Recommendation
“Christians often talk about “reaching the culture” without realizing that, having no distinct Christian culture of their own, they have been co-opted by the secular culture they wish to evangelize.” So says Rod Dreher in his 2017 book, The Benedict Option: A Strategy for Christians in a Post-Christian Nation. I’m a little late to the party on this book, as it got numerous reviews on the blogosphere after its release. However, the book was impactful in many ways for me. Dreher provides social critique considering our current social and political landscape. As institutions secularize, Christians and their institutions must become more distinctly Christian in order to survive and thrive. I would highly commend this work.
Links
Denny Burk has written a stellar and comprehensive review of Aimee Byrd’s provocative new book, Recovering from Biblical Manhood and Womanhood: How the Church Needs to Rediscover Her Purpose. Burk displays how we as Christians are to fairly and charitably engage those with whom we disagree.
Cal Newport, author of Deep Work and Digital Minimalism, is leading a growing charge against the shallowness of the technological revolution. His recent piece “On The Exceptionalism of Books in an Age of Tweets” is worth a read and your consideration.
The Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood recently published the latest edition of their journal, Eikon. The entire journal is worth reading, but I want to highlight their memorial to the late philosopher, Roger Scruton. Scruton is a brilliant mind, and worth exploration from evangelicals who are interested in the life of the mind.