Religious Freedom in an Egalitarian Age

Tebbe, a professor at Brooklyn Law School, reviews the current state of legal conflicts around religious freedom and non-discrimination, including topics such as wedding businesses turning away gay customers and the freedom of teachers at religious institutions to express controversial opinions on social media. Tensions run high around these cases, but Tebbe balances all sides as he presents a framework, which he calls social coherence, for how to ensure a fair, rational, and consistent legal outcome. The book’s framework rests on principles—avoiding harm to others, fairness to others, freedom of association, and government non-endorsement—that those on opposing sides should be able to agree on. Tebbe’s explications of the principles and the case law precedents they apply to are calm and reasoned, and his selected examples shed light on some of the complexities of applying them, including common errors. The book isn’t for the faint of heart, as the prose is dense and reliant on legal terminology, but it’s a fascinating showcase of relevant legal issues that is both scholarly and compassionate, a true commitment to ideas above ideology. (Jan.)