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June 25, 2007 - With new two new
justices on the Supreme Court, today's ruling
in the Hein v. Freedom From Religion Foundation
case provides insight as to the body's views
and opinions regarding church-state affairs,
said a University of Missouri-Columbia law
professor.
In a 5-4 decision, the Court ruled that
taxpayers can't challenge the White House's
initiative which allows religious charities
to receive federal dollars. The lawsuit
was initiated by a group of atheists and
agnostics against Bush administration officials
- including the head of the Office of Faith-Based
and Community Initiatives.
Carl H. Esbeck, who teaches law at MU, said
the Court's ruling in Hein v. Freedom From
Religion Foundation is pivotal because it
lays a foundation for what to expect in
matters related to church-state affairs.
Esbeck, a member of the Executive Committee
of the Religious Liberties Practice Group
of the Fedealist Society, helped craft President
Bush's faith-based initiative. He has been
a member of MU's faculty since 1981.
Esbeck has published in the area of church-state
relations and civil rights. He serves as
legal counsel to the Office of Governmental
Affairs of the National Association of Evangelicals
and is a member of the Advisory Council
of the Henry Institute for the Study of
Christianity and Politics at Calvin College.
Esbeck also is a member of the Advisory
Committee of the Journal of Law & Religion.
From 1999 to 2002, Esbeck was on leave in
Washington, D.C., to direct the Center for
Law and Religious Freedom, a public interest
law firm, and to serve as Senior Counsel
to the Deputy Attorney General at the U.S.
Department of Justice.
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