The state of Louisiana asked the full U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to uphold its right to display the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms after the American Civil Liberties Union filed suit in Roake v. Brumley.
A federal district court blocked the state’s measure, and a three-judge Fifth Circuit panel left that ruling in place. The full Fifth Circuit has now agreed to reconsider the case.
The state argues that displaying the Ten Commandments reflects a longstanding U.S. tradition of recognizing religion’s role in public life.
“Religious symbols have been a fixture of American public life since before the founding,” the brief states. It cites examples from the Founders’ proposals for the Great Seal and from the Ten Commandments carved into the U.S. Supreme Court building.
“There’s a longstanding American tradition of allowing symbols with religious roots in the public square, many of them ultimately drawn from the Hebrew Bible,” Joe Davis, senior counsel at Becket, the firm representing the state, told JNS.
“Purely passive symbols like a poster on the wall don’t impose religion,” Davis said. “They acknowledge it and often play a crucial role in ensuring an accurate representation of our nation’s civic culture.”
Such symbols “have been a fixture of American life since before the founding, and Louisiana’s Ten Commandments displays fit comfortably within this tradition,” he added.
Oral arguments in the case are scheduled for Jan. 20.
