Catholic City Loses Its Appeal. Wiccan Inmate Wins.

Welcome to the Napa Legal Podcast, where we discuss religious liberty from the perspective of faith-based nonprofits.In this week's episode, Frank DeVito and Kyle Nazareth discuss Texas adding scripture to its K–12 public school reading list, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court blocking statues of St. Michael and St. Florian from a Quincy public safety building, and a divided Ninth Circuit reviving a Wiccan inmate's claim over confiscated ritual items.In this episode, we discuss:[1:09] Texas adds selections from scripture to its K–12 reading list alongside the classic literature, and Frank argues the law sits comfortably inside the Establishment Clause — that Mahmoud v. Taylor did not forbid assigning texts at all but turned on parental notice and the normative character of the material, that Abington v. Schempp expressly preserved the Bible's literary and historic value, and that the first public schools went considerably further than anything Texas is now attempting.[11:33] The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court unanimously upholds an injunction against two ten-foot bronzes commissioned for Quincy's public safety building, applying a Lemon-derived state framework years after Kennedy v. Bremerton discarded it, and reaching the strange conclusion that the statues fail largely because they are new — turning American Legion, our most monument-friendly precedent, against them.[26:05] A divided Ninth Circuit panel revives a Wiccan inmate's First Amendment and RLUIPA claims over a confiscated altar cloth and medallion the dissent notes cost twelve dollars each, which Frank uses to raise the question sitting underneath the case: whether courts can coherently protect the free exercise of religion without a workable definition of religion. Kyle answers from natural theology and the founders' laws of nature and of nature's God.Chapter markers0:00 Intro1:09 Texas adds scripture to the K–12 curriculum1:39 Jonah, Job, and the Sermon on the Mount2:10 The Ten Commandments law and Nathan v. Alamo Heights2:56 Does Mahmoud v. Taylor apply?3:26 Why the Mahmoud texts were different4:15 Abington School District v. Schempp4:59 The Bible's literary and historic qualities6:14 The first public schools were explicitly Protestant7:23 Neutral proceduralism vs. substantive goods8:20 Not all ideas are equal10:06 Kyle: what is education actually for?11:33 Massachusetts: FitzMorris v. City of Quincy12:31 Two bronzes, fifteen plaintiffs, three organizations13:49 The SJC rules on August 2014:18 Article 3 and Michael McConnell's brief15:17 A state court applies Lemon after Kennedy15:46 Colo v. Treasurer and Receiver General17:42 Federal protection is a floor, not a ceiling18:12 The free exercise ceiling and Masterpiece Cakeshop19:09 The absurdity of the Lemon test19:39 Becket's secular purpose argument21:07 American Legion and the Bladensburg Cross22:03 Too new to protect23:35 Can a state court use an overruled federal test?24:29 Picking and choosing religious symbols26:05 Goff v. Rode in the Ninth Circuit27:29 A 2–1 reversal of summary judgment29:08 The dissent and the $12 replacement30:38 Resolved on the wrong element32:12 What is a religion?32:49 Employment Division v. Smith34:07 Madison and "the duty we owe our Creator"35:25 Where Wicca would fall36:28 Kyle: natural theology and the unmoved mover37:56 Aquinas, Blackstone, and the American founding39:41 Natural law theorists and originalists agree40:39 "If anything's a religion, then nothing's a religion"For more about Napa Legal and our work, visit our website here: https://www.napalegalinstitute.org/For more of the Napa Legal Podcast, visit our site here: https://www.napalegalinstitute.org/the-napa-legal-podcastThe Napa Legal Podcast, August 25, 2026#freedomofreligion #religiousliberty #establishmentclause