Unanimous Supreme Court Upholds Religious Freedom of Philadelphia Faith-Based Foster Care Agency

The U.S. Supreme Court has handed down its decision in the much-anticipated religious freedom case, Fulton v. Philadelphia, which pitted the right to operate a religious nonprofit in accordance with its deeply held beliefs against a city’s requirement that foster care agencies not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation.

In a unanimous 9-0 decision, the high court held that Philadelphia violated the First Amendment free exercise rights of Catholic Social Services (CSS), operating as a foster care agency for the city, when it removed CSS as a contractor for refusing to certify same-sex couples as prospective foster parents.

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the main opinion, which is short – only 15 pages. His concluding paragraph summarizes the court’s decision.

“As Philadelphia acknowledges,” Roberts wrote, “CSS has ‘long been a point of light in the City’s foster-care system.’ […] CSS 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. The refusal of Philadelphia to contract with CSS for the provision of foster care services unless it agrees to certify same-sex couples as foster parents cannot survive strict scrutiny, and violates the First Amendment. In view of our conclusion that the actions of the City violate the Free Exercise Clause, we need not consider whether they also violate the Free Speech Clause. The judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit is reversed, and the case is remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.”

Focus on the Family President Jim Daly issued the following statement following news of the high court’s decision:

“Today Focus on the Family and people of faith everywhere are relieved and hopeful. The tremendous news that all nine justices on the Supreme Court acknowledge the value and historical precedence in allowing faith-based foster care and adoption agencies to continue operating according to their religious principles is welcome in a culture that is increasingly antagonistic toward our deeply held beliefs.

“Churches and religious organizations have been a strong and fruitful source of finding children safe and loving homes, and they now have the freedom to do so without governmental interference. We rejoice with the children who will be served as a result of this decision and pray families will partner with these organizations to serve as a source of hope for those most in need.”

Dr. Sharen Ford is the Director for Foster Care and Adoption at Focus on the Family. She also rejoiced at the news from the Supreme Court, and especially its benefit to children and families.

“There are thousands of faith-affirming providers in the United States celebrating today’s news,” Dr. Ford told The Daily Citizen. “It’s a relief knowing they can continue to operate according to biblical principles and be the safety net vulnerable children rely on. There is already a shortage of foster families ready to serve the hurting children in our nation, so it was difficult for me to imagine what position our country would be in if religious recruiting and licensing agencies were essentially forced to end their work.

“Thankfully after today’s decision I don’t have to worry about that and neither do the children in the child welfare system. Our foster care and adoption team at Focus on the Family and believers across the nation have been praying for this outcome. We thank God for his provision and hope it will be seen as an opportunity for more Christian families to answer the call to foster and adopt knowing the agencies they partner with share their religious convictions.”

There were several concurring opinions in addition to the main opinion written by Chief Justice Roberts. Justice Amy Coney Barrett issued one, joined by Justice Brett Kavanaugh and Justice Stephen Breyer; Justice Samuel Alito issued another, joined by Justice Clarence Thomas and Justice Neil Gorsuch; and Justice Gorsuch issued his own concurrence, joined by Thomas and Alito.

It’s not very often that the Supreme Court unanimously agrees in a case involving the issue of religious freedom, so this decision will no doubt send an important message to all levels of government – federal, state and local – that the First Amendment’s religious freedom guarantees cannot be relegated to second-class rights.

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