Law Commons^™

Judicial Resolution Of Issues About Religious Conviction, Kent Greenawalt

Faculty Scholarship

What can judges and lawyers learn about religion from those whose field is religious studies, and from others who can illuminate the phenomenon of religion? Using examples provided in Winnifred Fallers Sullivan's paper, I want to place this general question within the fabric of free exercise law.

What I say assumes that some legal issues she raises have reasonably clear answers. Given the cavalier way the Supreme Court turned free exercise law upside down in Employment Division v. Smith, and given its harsh reception of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), which had received overwhelming Congressional support, little in this …

Why Now Is Not The Time For Constitutional Amendment: The Limited Reach Of City Of Boerne V. Flores, Kent Greenawalt

Faculty Scholarship

When the Supreme Court eviscerated the protection of the Free Exercise Clause in Employment Division v. Smith, religious groups and individuals dismayed by the decision chose to pursue statutory relief rather than a constitutional amendment. Now that the Supreme Court has decided in City of Boerne v. Flores that the resulting statute, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA or the "Act"), cannot be justified as a congressional exercise of power under the Fourteenth Amendment, many who care deeply about religious liberty may turn to the amendment process as an alternative. Although disappointed by the Flores decision, I believe it is …