The best way to balance religious freedom and the public interest

    What is the best way to balance religious freedom and the public interest? Federal judges can take one of two approaches when they are confronted with a case that invokes religious beliefs to challenge a law. In some cases the beliefs are subordinated to the public interest - the federal government, for instance, forbids polygamy (marriage to more than one person) even though some religious traditions promote that practice. In other cases, the religious beliefs are privileged - Hobby Lobby employee medical insurance doesn't cover access to emergency contraception or two types of IUDs since the corporation's religious beliefs clash with certain types of contraception.