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Religious Neutrality and the Supreme Court

Imago Dei writer Colby Garman has an important post on the Myth of Neutrality and the Supreme Court Nomination of Judge John Roberts which explains that the fundamental beliefs of individuals necessarily impact the decisions that are made:

The views an individual carries are informed by the ways that they answer the biggest questions in life. Is there a God? Why am I here? What is right and wrong? Is there life after death? What is truth? Everyone answers these questions (and a host of others) in one way or another. The way they answer the question forms their worldview which in turn affects their decisions. They are philosophical/religious questions and we all engage in them.

Through this discussion we see that the battle in the upcoming confirmation hearing is one of worldviews and not politics. Roberts, at the very least, symbolizes a Christian worldview in which the God given dignity of human life is recognized and liberty is granted by the Creator rather than the government. Secularists, who oppose belief systems that do not identify man as supreme, are anxious to harpoon Roberts’ confirmation by claiming that his Catholic faith will interfere with his judicial responsibilities.

The charge is coupled to the claim that there exist systems of (private) belief that do not influence the public decisions of the individual. In reality, the decisions and actions of an indiviudal reflect his or her core beliefs. Those who oppose Roberts because of his beliefs do so because their own personal worldview differs from his and not because religion is a private matter.

Posted by tim at August 2, 2005 10:50 PM

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