ABSTRACT

In the wake of the Health and Human Services’ (HHS) mandate on birth control, the Supreme Court’s Obergefell decision on gay marriage, and the passage of various nondiscrimination ordinances and statutes that expand concepts of nondiscrimination to include sexual orientation, there is greater tension between governments and religious persons and entities. There are questions as to whether philosophical, constitutional, and religious ideas about rights of faith and conscience will function to shield objectors or if rules and statutes will simply dictate behavior. The argument of this chapter is that a strong version of religious liberty (including under current conditions) delivers social benefits that merit continuing protection and advocacy even for nontheists.