REGRESSIVE USSC JUSTICES

I PERSONALLY HIGHLY RECOMMEND, LET ME SAY THAT AGAIN, HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS
BOOK . Buy it check it out of a library, it is a outstanding book. One of
the best on the topic I have ever read.
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RELIGION ON TRIAL, How Supreme Court Trends Threaten Freedom of Conscience
in America. Phillip E. Hammond, David W. Machacek, and Eric Michael Mazur,
Altamira Press, A Division of Rowan & Littlefield Publishers Inc. (2004)
ISBN 0-7591-0601-0
Price for new in the 19.95 to 22.56
Prices (paperback) used 9.95 (I paid 7.50 for my copy)
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Religion on Trial: How Supreme Court Trends Threaten Freedom of Conscience
in America

By Phillip E. Hammond, (University of California, Santa Barbara) ,
David W. Machacek, (Trinity College) , and
Eric Michael Mazur, (Bucknell University)
AltaMira Press
$19.95 Paper 0-7591-0601-0 April 2004 160pp
$65.00 Cloth 0-7591-0600-2 April 2004 160pp

The free exercise of conscience is under threat in the United States.
Already the conservative bloc of the Supreme Court is reversing the
progress of religious liberty that had been steadily advancing. And this
danger will only increase if more conservative judges are nominated to the
court. This is the impassioned argument of Religion on Trial. Against
Justices Scalia, Thomas, and Chief Justice Rehnquist, the authors argue
that what the First Amendment protects is the freedom of individual
conviction, not the rights of sectarian majorities to inflict their values
on others. Beginning with an analysis of the origins of the Constitution
and then following the history of significant church-state issues, Religion
on Trial shows that the trajectory of American history has been toward
greater freedoms for more Americans: freedom of religion moving gradually
toward freedom of conscience regardless of religion. But in the last
quarter-century, conservatives have gained political power and they are now
attempting to limit the ability of the Court to protect the rights of
individual conscience. Writing not just as scholars, but as advocates of
church-state separation, Hammond, Machacek, and Mazur make the strong case
that every American needs to pay attention to what is happening on the
Surpeme Court or risk losing the liberties of conscience and religion that
have been gained so far.

About The Authors
Phillip E. Hammond is D. Mackenzie Brown Professor of religious studies at
the University of California at Santa Barbara. He has written numerous
books and articles, including The School Prayer Decisions: From Court
Policy to Local Practice (1971), The Protestant Presence in Twentieth
Century America: Religion and Political Culture (1992), Religion and
Personal Autonomy: The Third Disestablishment in America (1992), and With
Liberty for All: Freedom of Religion in the United States (1998).

David W. Machacek is resident fellow at the Greenberg Center for Religion
in Public Life and visiting assistant professor of public policy at Trinity
College in Hartford, CT. His relevant publications include: "Religious and
Sexual Liberty: Civic versus Personal Morality in the United States" in his
forthcoming volume Sexuality and the World's Religions (2003), "The Problem
of Religious Pluralism" in the journal Sociology of Religion (2003), and
"Religion in Civil Society" in The Encyclopedia of Community (2003). He is
also co-author with Phillip E. Hammond of Soka Gakkai in America:
Accomodation and Conversion (1999).

Eric Michael Mazur is associate professor of religion at Bucknell
University. His publications include The Americanization of Religious
Minorities: Confronting the Constitutional Order (1999), ""The Supreme Law
of the Land': Sources of Conflict between Native Americans and the
Constitutional Order" in American Indian Studies: An Interdisciplinary
Approach to Contemporary Issues (1997), "Constitutional Authoirty and
Prospects for Social Justice for High Tension Religious Communities" in the
journal Social Justice Research (1996), and with Phillip Hammond, "Church,
State, and the Dilemma of Conscience" in the Journal of Church and State
(1995).

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REVIEWS ABOUT

Hammond., Machack, and Mazur have produced a powerful and engaging work
which documents a clear and present danger to religious freedom emanating
from the Supreme Court itself. This book, accessible and engaging, should
be of interest to any American open to the idea that separation of church
and state is a cornerstone of real democracy and genuine moral choice. The
work is infused with solid historical scholarship, thougthful core studies,
and compelling argument for keeping distance between religious institutions
and government,
REV. BARRY LYNN Execute director of American United for Separation of
Church and State.

Religion on trial is a book that many, including some justices of the
Supreme Court , will hate.
Because they assert that the regressive justices of the court are
unfaithful to the Constitution, the authors raise the alarm about the
present state and future of separation of church and state and its
corollary, religious freedom. Thoroughly grounded in history, their
argument is a paean to freedom of conscience and a cautionary tale about
the current court and allowing any more
regressive justices to be appointed to the court. Those who cherish
religious freedom and civil rights generally will find much to ponder, and
to be dismayed, in its formative, provocative, and readable book.
RONALD FLOWERS Texas Christian University.

A superb and readily accessible account of the story of freedom of
conscience under the First Amendment of the U S Constitution — "Religion on
Trial" is a powerful indictment of the ‘regressive' justices of the current
U S Supreme Court. Everyone for whom freedom of conscience is important —
that is, every American— should take heed
BARBARA A. McGRAW author of Rediscovering America;s Scared Ground: Public
Religion and the Pursuit of Good in a pluralistic America.

"The book is scholarly, yet written for a general adult reading
audience. It is unique in its thesis and makes a contribution to the
literature on freedom of conscience. It is highly controversial, but once
one readers agree with the book's premise, its conclusion logically
follows. . . . It is a splendid book."—Robert W. Langran, Villanova
University, Perspectives on Political Science

"Well written and of quite manageable length. Recommended"— Choice
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