Faith on Trial : Communities of Faith, the First Amendment, and the Theory of Deep Diversity

Faith on Trial explains how the Supreme Court's reliance on "procedural liberalism" hampers its ability to adequately address the reality of religion as a pluralistic social institution.

American Supreme Court jurisprudence in the area of religious freedom has been, for the most part, predicated upon a form of liberal theory commonly known as "procedural liberalism." Faith on Trial explains how the Court''s reliance on this theoretical basis hampers its ability to adequately address the reality of religion as a pluralistic social institution. David E. Guinn provides a detailed critique of procedural liberalism by thinkers such as Charles Taylor and Iris Marion Young—tapping into the idea of "deep diversity" suggested by Taylor—through the development of a new theoretical model that reconceptualizes Supreme Court jurisprudence. This challenging work demonstrates a practical way to resolve the problems inherent in much existing religious freedom jurisprudence and calls for a reformation of Supreme Court thinking on the First Amendment.