Court sides with Catholic foster care agency

In another victory for religious groups at the Supreme Court, on June 17 the justices unanimously sided with a Catholic foster care agency that says its religious views prevent it from working with same-sex couples. The court said the City of Philadelphia wrongly limited its relationship with the group as a result of the agency’s policy.

The ruling focused narrowly on the facts of the case, sidestepping broader questions about how to balance religious freedom with antidiscrimination laws and turning instead on the language in the city’s foster care contract. Three conservative justices would have gone much further, and LGBTQ groups said they were relieved that the decision was limited.

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the majority that Catholic Social Services “seeks only an accommodation that will allow it to continue serving the children of Philadelphia in a manner consistent with its religious beliefs; it does not seek to impose those beliefs on anyone else.”