The Supreme Court heard arguments on Monday on how broadly federal employment discrimination laws apply to schools run by churches in two cases that will give the court another opportunity to rule on the proper relationship between church and state, a topic that has deeply engaged the justices.
The cases, which involve teachers in Catholic schools in California who sued their employers for job discrimination, will require the justices to find a balance between two competing interests: avoiding government interference in the internal affairs of religious groups and protecting the groups’ employees from discrimination.
