Page "Free Exercise Clause" Paragraph 5

This interpretation of the Free Exercise Clause continued into the 1960s and the ascendancy of the Warren Court under chief justice Earl Warren.

Applying a new standard of " strict scrutiny " in various areas of civil rights law, the Court began to apply this standard to the First Amendment religion clauses as well, reading the Free Exercise Clause to require accommodation of religious conduct except where a state could show a compelling interest and no less burdensome means to achieve that end.

One example was Sherbert v. Verner, where the Court overturned the state Employment Security Commission's decision to deny unemployment benefits to a practicing member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church who was forced out of a job after her employer adopted a 6 day work week, which would have required her to work on Saturdays against the dictates of her religion.

As Justice William Brennan stated for the majority, " to condition the availability of benefits upon this appellant's willingness to violate a cardinal principle of her religious faith effectively penalizes the free exercise of her constitutional liberties.

" This test was used through the years of the Burger Court, including particularly in the landmark case of Wisconsin v. Yoder ( 1972 ).