The Federal Supreme Court vs Nevada and California Christians

A lot of folks are riled up about the federal Supreme Court’s refusing to come to the aid of the Christians in California and Nevada who are unable to worship freely because of the dictates of the governors of those States.  Such folks usually base their arguments for US Supreme Court relief on the 1^st Amendment to the federal charter.  But we must remember at whom that Amendment was directed:  ‘Congress shall make no law . . .’  The 1^st Amendment does not apply to States, but to the US Congress.  Even with the passage of the 14^th Amendment, there was not meant to be any imposition of federal 1st Amendment religious rules placed upon the States.  See p. 633 and following in Vincent Munoz, The Original Meaning of the Establishment Clause and the Impossibility of Its Incorporation, available at https://scholarship.law.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1280&context=jcl .  This is proved all the more by the continuance in State constitutions of protections for religious liberty. 

Nevada:

The free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and worship without discrimination or preference shall forever be allowed in this State . . . .

--Article 1, Section 4, https://www.leg.state.nv.us/Const/NVConst.html

California:

Free exercise and enjoyment of religion without discrimination or preference are guaranteed.

--Article I, Section 4, https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displayText.xhtml?lawCode=CONS&division=&title=&part=&chapter=&article=I

If the 1^st and 14^th Amendments were meant to apply to the States, why have these sections in State constitutions at all?  Because the former do not apply to the States.

We do not like these dictates from State governors, mayors, and so on banning religious services, church singing, Holy Communion, etc., either.  They are quite evil.  But the way to overcome them does not lie in the federal courts.  It lies in our States, counties, parishes, cities, towns, and neighborhoods.  We have thought of the federal government as a panacea for all of our troubles for too long.  We must, as they say, think locally and act locally.  We must rebuild institutions at the State and local level that will offer protection from these sorts of gross abuses of Christians.  The oligarchs that the federal constitution has empowered (and was meant to empower) will not be coming to our aid any time soon.

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Holy Ælfred the Great, King of England, South Patron, pray for us sinners at the Souð, unworthy though we are!

Anathema to the Union!