The Religion Law Quiz Podcast

The Religion Law Quiz Podcast

The Religion Law Quiz podcast educates you about religious freedom and other religion law related topics through a short question and answer format. Quizzes cover the current state of the law in a non-biased, non-political format.

Episodes

June 1, 2024 2 mins

The Supreme Court’s Tanzin v. Tanvir decision is not one that is widely known.  But the potential impact of that decision is big given its holding.  (Don’t worry, we’ll cover that in a future Religion Law Quiz.)  What were the key facts of the Tanzin decision? 

 

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Answer: Here’s how the Supreme Court summarized those facts:

 

Respondents Muhammad Tanvir, Jameel Algibhah, and Naveed Shinwari are practic...

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A lot of times in life we just generically refer to certain things.  But sometimes it is important to stop and ask: What specifically is the definition of that particular thing?  That concept applies to religion law related matters.  Frequently we talk about the “government” what exactly does that mean?  More specifically, how does the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (“RFRA”) define “government”? 

 

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What did the Supreme Court hold in Employment Div., Dept. of Human Resources of Ore. v. Smith, 494 U.S. 872 (1990) and (b) what did the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) seek to do in response to the Supreme Court’s Smith decision? 

 

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Answer:  Here is how the Supreme Court answered that decision in 2020. 

 

RFRA secures Congress’ view of the right to free exercise under the First Amendment, and...

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How would you explain RFRA (i.e., the Religious Freedom Restoration Act) to a kindergartener? 

 

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Answer:  Here’s how the Supreme Court succinctly summarized RFRA in 2020:

 

The Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (RFRA) prohibits the Federal Government from imposing substantial burdens on religious exercise, absent a compelling interest pursued through the least restrictive means. 107 Stat. 1488...

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In what year did the Supreme Court issue its decision in Tanzin v. Tanvir and what was the issue that the Supreme Court decided in that case?  

 

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Answer: The Supreme Court issued its opinion in 2020.  Here’s how the Supreme Court described the issue it was facing:

 

The Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (RFRA) prohibits the Federal Government from imposing substantial burdens on religious exer...

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True or False: An employer can satisfy Title VII’s “undue hardship” test by assessing the reasonableness of a particular accommodation and determining that such a request is unreasonable and would create an undue hardship for the employer. 

 

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Answer:  FALSE.  Title VII requires an employer to reasonably accommodate an employee’s religious practice rather than just the employer assessing the reasonable...

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In Religion Law Quiz #99 we learned “that ‘undue hardship’ in Title VII means what it says, and courts should resolve whether a hardship would be substantial in the context of an employer's business in the common-sense manner that it would use in applying any such test.”  Groff v. DeJoy, 143 S. Ct. 2279, 2296, 216 L. Ed. 2d 1041 (2023).  But when a court is making this determination, are there certain points that are “off-limits” t...

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True or False: In the context of Title VII, whether a requested religious accommodation creates an “undue hardship” should be determined by the court applying a common-sense test inquiring whether the hardship is substantial in the context of the employer’s business. 

 

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Answer: True.  Here’s what the Supreme Court said in that regard. 

 

What is most important is that “undue hardship” in Title VII mea...

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A heuristic is a mental shortcut that we use to reach decisions.  We all use heuristics and they can be very helpful.  But sometimes our use of a heuristic can be an Achilles heel because our generation and use of the heuristic overlooks critical details which, when they are considered, helps us realize that the heuristic that we used and created is incorrect. 

 

With that concept in mind, when you analyze the Supreme Court’s recen...

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In June 2023 the Supreme Court issued its opinion in Groff v. DeJoy ruling on religious accommodations under Title VII.  In a nutshell, what was the main holding of the Groff decision? 

 

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Answer:  Here’s how the Supreme Court answers that question in the syllabus:

 

Held: Title VII requires an employer that denies a religious accommodation to show that the burden of granting an accommodation would res...

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Religion Law Quiz #91 asked how you would explain “strict scrutiny” to a kindergartner.  In keeping with that theme (i.e., you only truly understand a concept when you can intelligently teach it to someone much younger and less knowledgeable than yourself), how would you, in just one sentence, describe what Title VII requires of employers for employees who seek a religious accommodation? 

 

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Answer:  H...

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In Groff v. DeJoy, 243 S.Ct. 2279 (2023), the Supreme Court was recently asked to address Title VII in the context of a former United States Postal Service (USPS) employee who, as an evangelical Christian, Sunday should be for worship and rest (not work).  The USPS disagreed and did not make a reasonable accommodation for him.  The worker filed suit and the District Court and later the Third Circuit ruled in favor of the USPS.  The...

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Religion Law Quiz #94

 

The last several Religion Law Quizzes have focused on key legal principles as articulated in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 141 S.C.t 1868 (2021).  Today’s Religion Law Quiz poses one final question regarding that decision. 

 

The Fulton decision specifically recognized that “‘gay persons and gay couples cannot be treated as social outcasts or as inferior in dignity and worth.’” Id. at 1882 (c...

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Religion Law Quiz #93

 

A city speculates that it will be sued if it grants an exception to its non-discrimination policies to a religious institution.  Does that constitute a sufficient basis for the city to satisfy strict scrutiny? 

 

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Answer: No.  Here’s how the Supreme Court addressed that question. 

 

As for liability, the City offers only speculation that it might be sued over CSS's certification...

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Religion Law Quiz #92

 

If a city has a compelling interest in generally enforcing its non-discrimination policies will those policies survive strict scrutiny because the city’s interest is compelling? 

 

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Answer:  That is the wrong question to be asking.  The issue is not whether the city has a compelling interest in generally enforcing its non-discrimination policies but rather if it has a compelling...

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Religion Law Quiz #91

 

Today’s Religion Law Quiz is going to challenge you in a very novel way.  Let’s see how you do. 

 

How would you describe to a kindergartner how a government policy can survive strict scrutiny when dealing with religion?     

 

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Answer:  Here’s how the Supreme Court explained strict scrutiny in more easy-to-understand terms:

 

 A government policy can survive strict scrutiny onl...

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Religion Law Quiz #90

 

A city has a municipal code which has a formal system of discretionary exemptions for religious institutions.  Will such a regulatory scheme withstand judicial review if the court applies strict scrutiny? 

 

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Answer: No.  This is a bit of a trick question because the system fails no matter what level of scrutiny the court applies.  As the Supreme Court has said, “No matter the l...

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Religion Law Quiz #89

 

Can the government discriminate against religion when acting in a managerial role? 

 

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Answer: No.  The Supreme Court has plainly stated, “We have never suggested that the government may discriminate against religion when acting in its managerial role.”  Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 141 S. Ct. 1868, 1878 (2021).

 

Disclaimer: The Religion Law Quizzes are provide...

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Religion Law Quiz #88

 

In Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 141 S. Ct. 1868, 1878 (2021) the regulations adopted by Philadelphia “incorporates a system of individual exemptions, made available in this case at the ‘sole discretion’ of the Commissioner. The City has made clear that the Commissioner ‘has no intention of granting an exception’ to” Catholic Social Services.  Id. (citations omitted).  Was the City of Philade...

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Religion Law Quiz #87

 

Today’s Religion Law Quiz is definitely a tougher one.  Let’s see how you do. 

 

In Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania the Supreme Court stated that “Government fails to act neutrally when it proceeds in a manner intolerant of religious beliefs or restricts practices because of their religious nature.”  141 S. Ct. 1868, 1877 (2021).  The Supreme Court then went on to identify two specific guideline...

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