The political theology of justice Hugo Black

Associate Justice Hugo Black is often considered one of the giants of twentieth-century American religion clause jurisprudence. Especially regarding the Establishment Clause, Black sought to leave his mark on precedent. Previous biographers and legal scholars have noted the influence of his own reli...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of law and religion
Main Author: Bertucio, Brett (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Cambridge Univ. Press [2020]
In: Journal of law and religion
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Black, Hugo LaFayette 1886-1971 / Jurist / Political theology
RelBib Classification:CG Christianity and Politics
KBQ North America
XA Law
Further subjects:B Establishment Clause
B judicial philosophy
B Religious Freedom
B Political Theology
B Legal History
B Hugo Black
Online Access: Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
Description
Summary:Associate Justice Hugo Black is often considered one of the giants of twentieth-century American religion clause jurisprudence. Especially regarding the Establishment Clause, Black sought to leave his mark on precedent. Previous biographers and legal scholars have noted the influence of his own religious convictions on his legal reasoning. I extend this line of inquiry but argue that Black's decisions enshrine a more concrete, substantive view of religion and political life than has previously been acknowledged. By drawing primarily on archival research regarding Justice Black's reading, correspondence, and religious membership, I argue that we can best understand his religious thought as a species of political theology, one I term syncretic civic moralism. In brief, Justice Black viewed the ideal religion as one free of doctrinal claims and primarily supporting prosocial behavior and civic loyalty. After outlining the impact of his theology on his landmark opinions, I conclude by suggesting some of the consequences of Black's theo-political jurisprudence for contemporary American establishment debates.
ISSN:2163-3088
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of law and religion
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1017/jlr.2020.10