Faith in the Courts? The Legal and Political Future of Federally-Funded Faith-Based Initiatives

After centuries of church-state cooperation in the field of social service provision, the relationship between government agencies and faith-based organizations has suddenly acquired fame and notoriety. President George W. Bush's emphasis on faith-based service providers as key battalions in his "army of compassion" has sparked vigorous debate in Congress, the popular media, and academic circles. This has infused the notion of government-funded faith-based initiatives with a new level of political salience. That salience, in turn, has raised the specter of a legal challenge, whether constitutional or statutory.

In short, to the extent that faith-based organizations are now a common topic of discussion in newsrooms, boardrooms, and living rooms, the number of potential opponents-and litigants-has expanded considerably. This Note seeks to fill a gap in the literature by analyzing the likelihood that a legal challenge will occur, identifying the potential sources of that challenge, defining the contours of such a challenge, and predicting the likely outcomes.