ABSTRACT
Justice Antonin Scalia argued that the Washington law impermissibly burdened religious believers by denying them general welfare benefits. In Locke v. Davey, 124 S. Ct. 1307, however, the Court indicated that the state of Washington was not obligated to extend its Promise Scholarship Program to enable Joshua Davey, who had since completed his studies and enrolled at Harvard Law School, to study theology at Northwest College, a school affiliated with the Assemblies of God denomination. Although it permitted money to be used at accredited religious colleges, the Washington scholarship program specifically prohibited aid to students pursuing degrees in "devotional theology." In Davey's case, he hoped to become a minister but was denied state aid on the basis that the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the US Constitution and a similar provision in the state constitution permitted states to prohibit scholarship funds from being used specifically to train individuals to become preachers.
