In a move welcomed by many in the Jewish community, the Supreme Court has let stand a lower court decision barring the distribution of Gideon Bibles to students in an Indiana public school district.
The court’s decision Monday not to take the case was seen as a victory for those who believe in the strict separation of church and state.
“I’m delighted,” said Steven Freeman, director of the Anti-Defamation League’s legal affairs department. The case “was correctly decided from below,” he said, adding that there was no reason for the Supreme Court to accept it for review.
ADL filed a brief at the lower court level, opposing the distribution of Bibles in the schools.
The court’s decision not to take the case “affirms the vitality of the Establishment Clause,” said Mark Pelavin, Washington representative for the American Jewish Congress. He was referring to a clause in the First Amendment to the Constitution that bars any “government establishment of religion.”
AJCongress did not file a brief in the case.
The case, Rensselaer Central School Corporation vs. Berger, involved the distribution of Bibles to fifth-graders in public schools in Rensselaer, a community in rural northwest Indiana.
The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the school district to halt the distribution of the Bibles, overturning a district court ruling.
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