As the yuletide holidays have passed, so too has the litigation that comes with the season. Every year around this time, suits are brought challenging municipalities that place or permit the placement of nativity scenes on public property. In the spirit of ecumenism, sometimes they also challenge the placement of menorahs.
Before we start preparing for next year’s courtroom ritual, we should rethink what it is we’re arguing about. For it’s not the Constitution that bars public displays of religious belief. It’s the failure of our courts and our local governments to draw a properly accommodating line between church and state.
