Goldman v. Weinberger

The Goldman decision was consistent with the Supreme Court's history of balancing First Amendment rights against the government's interests. The Court has defended individual rights to the free exercise of religion and has accepted increasingly broad and tolerant views on religious diversity, but has stopped short of finding that religious beliefs are universally more important than legitimate government interests in matters such as defense, public safety, or public health. However, in Church of Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah (1993), the Court ruled that members of the Santeria religion were permitted under the First Amendment to violate public health laws by the ritual slaughter of animals in their religious ceremonies. The Court found that this was an instance in which the First Amendment right to free exercise of religion outweighed a compelling state interest..