"Rededicate 250" Held on National Mall Yesterday

Crowds of people gathered yesterday on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. for Rededicate 250: A National Jubilee of Prayer, Praise & Thanksgiving. The organizers, Freedom 250, are described by NPR as "a public-private group working with the White House."  A video of the full 8 hours and 45 minutes of the program is available here on YouTube. Speakers included public officials, clergy and authors. (List of speakers.) According to CNN:

Freedom 250, a nonprofit subsidiary of the National Park Foundation, which functions as the National Park Service’s fundraising arm, organized the event....

While organizers invited Americans of every background to attend the event, the long list of faith leaders who attended consisted largely of evangelical Christians — except for one Orthodox rabbi and two conservative Catholic bishops. Brittany Baldwin, White House senior policy adviser and executive of the White House Task Force America 250, described a focus on “our heritage as a Judeo-Christian” nation....

 Experts CNN spoke with were split on whether the event was constitutional....

NPR pointed out:

President Trump, who was golfing on Sunday afternoon, did not attend the event. Trump delivered a video message reading the Biblical scripture 2 Chronicles 7:11-22, which details God's response to King Solomon after he completed the temple in Jerusalem.

Trump administration officials including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio also spoke in video messages....

School's Exclusion of Fellowship of Christian Athletes Violates RFRA and 1st Amendment

 In Fellowship of Christian Athletes v. District of Columbia, (D DC, July 11, 2024), a D.C. federal district court issued a preliminary injunction requiring D.C.'s Jackson Reed High School to reinstate Fellowship of Christian Athletes as a recognized student organization for the school year 2024-2025. FCA's recognition had been suspended because it required its student leaders to affirm its Statement of Faith which bars sexual relations outside of heterosexual marriage and bars any sexually immoral act including homosexuality. This was seen as a violation of the school's anti-discrimination policy. The court concluded that applying the anti-discrimination policy in this manner violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act because it substantially burdens FCA's exercise of religion. The court said in part:

[T]he District’s interest is unjustifiably speculative.  It seeks to “protect[] the safety and well-being of its students by promoting an equitable environment free of discrimination.”... [T]he District readily admits that a student in noncompliance with FCA’s Statement of Faith—whether an atheist, Jewish, gay, or lesbian student—is unlikely to seek a leadership position....  The District can thus offer “only speculation” that FCA’s reinstatement would pose an actual threat of discrimination against any Jackson-Reed student based on a protected characteristic.... Such a speculative goal does not pass muster under strict scrutiny.  

Moreover, the District’s exclusion of FCA as a means of eliminating discrimination is “fatally underinclusive.”... [T]he District permits student groups besides FCA to continue operating at Jackson-Reed even though they restrict membership on the basis of protected characteristics and/or ideological alignment....  The District’s “interest” in nondiscrimination “cannot justify” a nondiscrimination policy “that requires only religious” groups to “bear [its] weight.” ...

The court also concluded that the school had violated the First Amendment's Free Exercise Clause, concluding that the school's policy was not generally applicable and thus was subject to strict scrutiny. It said in part:

[T]he District permits secular groups to limit their membership to ideologically aligned students while denying the same right to FCA with respect to its leadership. The Court can find “no meaningful constitutionally acceptable distinction between the types of exclusions at play here.”

DC Archdiocese Sues Over Rejection of Christmas Season Bus Ads

The Washington, D.C. Catholic Archdiocese yesterday filed suit in federal district court against the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority after WMATA rejected ads designed to be placed on the exterior of buses promoting the Archdiocese's "Find the Perfect Gift" Campaign.  The complaint (full text) in Archdiocese of Washington v. Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, (D DC, filed 11/28/2017), describes the ads:

the advertisements depict, in minimalist style, a starry night, with silhouettes of a small group of shepherds and sheep standing on a hill. All of the advertisements refer to an Internet site, FindThePerfectGift.org, which contains links to Mass schedules, opportunities for charitable service, information about religious holiday traditions, and reflections on the meaning of the Advent and Christmas seasons. The advertisements also refer to a social-media hashtag, #PerfectGift.

The WMATA advertising Guidelines prohibit ads that "promote or oppose any religion, religious practice, or belief."  The complaint alleges that the Guidelines as applied to this ad violate the Archdiocese's 1st amendment free speech and free exercise rights, RFRA, as well as denying it equal protection and due process.  The Archdiocese issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit.

Where Will Ivanka and Her Husband Pray?

Politico reported yesterday on the speculation swirling in Washington over which Orthodox synagogue "first-daughter" Ivanka Trump and  her husband Jared Kushner will make their religious home.  Many are suggesting that Georgetown's Kesher Israel is a front-runner.  Meanwhile The Forward speculates that the couple might opt for a private synagogue, or build a private one of their own, saying: "In-house worship spaces are a hot commodity for the observant wealthy."