Joe Kennedy, an assistant soccer coach at Bremerton Faculty District in Washington state, was fired in 2015 for praying on the 50-yard line after video games. This led to a authorized battle that ultimately reached the US Supreme Court docket final yr.

In a landmark ruling, the Supreme Court docket dominated in favor of Kennedy, stating that his non secular freedom was violated when he was fired for his post-game prayers.

Kennedy sued the varsity district in 2016, arguing that his non secular freedom was being restricted. Nonetheless, a three-judge panel for the ninth Circuit Court docket of Appeals dominated towards him in 2017.

Regardless of this setback, Kennedy refused to surrender and continued his authorized battle, which culminated in a 6-3 ruling by the Supreme Court docket in his favor in June 2021.

In accordance with The Christian Submit, Kennedy and Bremerton Faculty District filed a joint stipulation final October that might have Kennedy reinstated to his former place by March 15, 2023.

First Liberty Institute, a conservative authorized agency that represented Kennedy, introduced final week that he has returned to his place as a soccer coach at Bremerton Faculty District. This information has been welcomed by many who supported Kennedy’s battle for non secular freedom.

The Supreme Court docket’s ruling in Kennedy’s case was a major victory for non secular freedom in America. Of their resolution, the Supreme Court docket acknowledged that the Free Train and Free Speech Clauses of the First Modification defend expressions like Kennedy’s.

Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote within the majority opinion, “The Structure and the very best of our traditions counsel mutual respect and tolerance, not censorship and suppression, for non secular and nonreligious views alike.”

The authorized battle between Kennedy and Bremerton Faculty District highlights the continued debate over the separation of church and state in America.

Whereas some argue that public faculties ought to be utterly secular, others imagine that people ought to have the suitable to precise their non secular beliefs, even in public settings like faculties.

No matter one’s private beliefs, Kennedy’s case is a crucial reminder of the significance of defending non secular freedom in America. The First Modification ensures the suitable to freedom of faith, and it’s as much as us as a society to make sure that this proper is protected and upheld for all people.