With the discriminatory decision by SCOTUS today directly at the behest of a religious dogma that is specifically aimed at women and only women you have entered the realm of politics and governance. This removes any idea of the validity of the "lemon test" as outlined in Lemon v. Kurtzman in 1971.
The Lemon Test
Government action violates the Establishment Clause unless it:
1. Has a significant secular (i.e., non-religious) purpose,
2. Does not have the primary effect of advancing or inhibiting religion, and
3. Does not foster excessive entanglement between government and religion.
Hence if religions continue in this political interference then they should also be subject to:
Taxes on earnings
Taxes on property
In other words all the exemptions covered by Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. § 501(c).
They were also meant to lose these privileges if they promoted anything contrary to the desegregation laws.
I would argue that their involvement in discrimination against one specific part of the population [women] on a legal and governmental level removes their right to preferential treatment under both the law and any future legislation.
They have breached the divide between belief and governance and as such have overstepped what was laid out in the first amendment, the imposition of their specific beliefs on the law of the land.
“The purpose of separation of church and state is to keep forever from these shores the ceaseless strife that has soaked the soil of Europe in blood for centuries."
~James Madison
This strife was promoted by St Ronnie of Reagan when he welcomed in the extremist evangelicals into the Republican party base, the cries of "America is a Christian Country" highlight their intention to govern [based on a specific religion's dogma]
This SCOTUS decision undermines the intended separation further. Hillary Clinton referred to this decision as a slippery slope
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton condemned the Supreme Court’s decision on Hobby Lobby’s challenge to the Obamacare contraceptive-coverage mandate. The ruling that closely held corporations can deny birth control coverage to their employees on religious grounds, she said, is “a really bad slippery slope.”
Perhaps it is also time to repeal in the
Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993? Since they cannot seem to avoid promoting discrimination based on gender.
As justice J Ginsburg pointed out in her dissent
for which the ACA provides furthers compelling interests in public health and women’s well being. Those interests are concrete, specific, and demonstrated by a wealth of empirical evidence
Then again harming women has never worried the right and religious right when discriminating against women.
Since the Green Family are only promoting the view of the Assemblies of God the IRS should remove their 501[c] status immediately.
It is a slippery slope and religions should be very concerned when they start playing with political fire.