What 'praying judge' Alito gets fundamentally wrong about faith and the First Amendment: analysis

18 June 2024

When liberal filmmaker/activist Lauren Windsor spoke to Justice Samuel Alito at a Supreme Court Historical Society event on June 3, she pretended to be a right-wing Christian nationalist — saying she didn't think "we can negotiate with the left," that "godliness" needs to prevail in the United States, and that her side needs to "win."

Alito told Windsor, "I think you're probably right…. One side or the other is going to win. I don't know. I mean, there can be a way of working — a way of living together peacefully, but it's difficult, you know, because there are differences on fundamental things that really can't be compromised. They really can't be compromised. So it's not like you are going to split the difference."

In a June 18 opinion column, the Washington Post's Theodore R. Johnson argues that Alito gets some things fundamentally wrong about religion and the U.S. Constitution.

Johnson stresses that Alito, a right-wing Catholic, has every right to be as religious as he wants — but doesn't have a right to dictate that others do the same.

"Despite its falling church attendance," Johnson explains, "the United States is a religious nation. People of all faiths practice here, a constitutional right protected in the First Amendment. More than 80 percent of Americans say they are religious or spiritual. Ideas about providence and a promised land are woven into our founding mythology…. This is the United States; there's nothing wrong with a praying judge."

The Washington Post journalist continues, "But the long arm of the law is not the hand of God. This is why Alito's remarks and signs needed stricter scrutiny."

Americans who reject "MAGA nationalism," Johnson writes, are "justified in asking where Alito sees the line between religion and state."

"Religion seemed to be a central influence when the Court rescinded the constitutional right to an abortion and earlier when the Court allowed contraceptives to be excluded from companies' health insurance plans," Johnson explains. "Justice Clarence Thomas — whose wife lobbied White House officials and lawmakers to prevent Joe Biden from taking office — has suggested the Court's establishment of constitutional protections for gay marriage and contraception was improper."

Johnson adds, "With questions like these swirling, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. is left to defend the institution with a saint's devotion. The separation of church and state is a concept older than the United States."

Theodore R. Johnson's full Washington Post column is available at this link (subscription required).

From Your Site Articles