Of Epicycles & god

Ptolemy lives, so does the fiat of religion over science as seen by yet another 5/4 decision by the supremes, this time Hobby Lobby and the right of religion to, in effect, dictate a woman's right to choose by denying insured contraceptive ACA coverage using christianity to make it happen.

But in all that hullabaloo, commentators have overlooked a critical piece of Supreme Court dogma that may prove to be the undoing of conservative religious liberty activists: that the court will not inquire into religious claims.

Early on in Justice Alito’s opinion for the court, he says of the plaintiffs, the Green and Hahn families, that “according to their religious beliefs the four contraceptive methods at issue are abortifacients.”

Let’s parse that sentence.  “The four contraceptive methods at issue are abortofacients.”  That should be a statement of fact, not faith.  Either these pills cause abortions, or they don’t.  Yet Justice Alito—himself a devout Catholic—says that this fact may be determined based on “religious beliefs.”

If I believe the sun revolves around the earth, is that now a disputable fact?  According to Justice Alito, yes.  If I have a religious belief that it does, then it doesn’t matter that it doesn’t.

The Flying Spaghetti Monster lives.

The Epicycle as described in the Ptolemaic universe.