THE contours of two First Amendment rights—freedom of speech and the free exercise of religion—will be on the Supreme Court’s plate on December 5th when the justices take up Masterpiece Cakeshop v Colorado Civil Rights Commission, a key battle over same-sex marriage. This post examines the religion question; next week, your blogger will look at the issue of free speech.
The conflict in Masterpiece Cakeshop dates to 2012, when Charlie Craig and David Mullins were shopping for a wedding cake and walked into a bakery near Denver, Colorado. Jack Phillips, the proprietor of Masterpiece Cakeshop, told the couple he would be willing sell them a birthday cake or some cookies but that he does not, as a policy, “provide cakes for same-sex weddings”. Mr Phillips, a Christian who “strives to honour God in all aspects of his life”, considers gay marriage “sacrilegious” and refuses “to express through his art an idea about marriage that conflicts with his religious beliefs”.
In many corners of...Continue reading
Source: United States http://ift.tt/2Anei82
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