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Sparking positive reactions from religious freedom advocates, the US Supreme Court unanimously ruled June 5 that Wisconsin cannot deny Catholic Charities Bureau of the Diocese of Superior a religious tax exemption, a decision that overturns a previous court ruling that said the ministry was not religious because it employs and serves non-Catholics.
The case centered on Catholic Charities’ request to leave the state’s unemployment compensation program and pay into a different one offered by Wisconsin’s bishops, CatholicVote reported last year. The Wisconsin Supreme Court had ruled that Catholic Charities could not be exempted from the state program, deciding that its ministry to the poor, though religiously motivated, did not qualify it as a religious organization.
However, the Supreme Court disagreed, ruling that Wisconsin discriminated against Catholic Charities because of its religion and violated the First Amendment.
“It is fundamental to our constitutional order that the government maintain ‘neutrality between religion and religion,’” Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in the unanimous opinion, citing a landmark First Amendment case, Epperson v. Arkansas. “There may be hard calls to make in policing that rule, but this is not one.”
The justices also stated that the Wisconsin Supreme Court showed preference for other religions based on theological practices, as it had offered Catholic Charities the exemption if the organization agreed to only serve other Catholics or attempt to convert those it ministered to.
The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, the nonprofit legal organization that represented Catholic Charities, stated in a news release that Catholic Charities could not comply with the qualifications for an exemption, as Church teaching mandates that caring for the poor cannot be done on the condition that those receiving aid convert.
Bishop James Powers of the Diocese of Superior expressed his gratitude for the legal win in the release.
“At the heart of Catholic Charities’ ministry is Christ’s call to care for the least of our brothers and sisters, without condition and without exception,” he stated. “We’re grateful the Court unanimously recognized that improving the human condition by serving the poor is part of our religious exercise and has allowed us to continue serving those in need throughout our diocese and beyond.”
Josh Mercer, vice president of CatholicVote, commended the Supreme Court for upholding Catholic Charities’ right to religious freedom.
“It was foolish for the Wisconsin Supreme Court to suggest that Catholic Charities wasn’t entitled to a religious exemption because they were not engaged in proselytization nor limited their charity to only Catholics,” he said. “The case was so cut and dry that the Supreme Court ruled unanimously in favor of Catholic Charities.”
Eric Rassbach, vice president and senior counsel at Becket, stated in the release that “Wisconsin shouldn’t have picked this fight in the first place.”
“It was always absurd to claim that Catholic Charities wasn’t religious because it helps everyone, no matter their religion,” he added. “Today, the Court resoundingly reaffirmed a fundamental truth of our constitutional order: the First Amendment protects all religious beliefs, not just those the government favors.”
The Supreme Court’s ruling was one of several decisions the court made June 5, including a ruling that protects majority groups from “reverse discrimination.”
