Can Religious Organizations Use Their Land w/o Government Interference? | Guest John Ketcham 5/29/26
Episode Description
Welcome to the Napa Legal Podcast, where we discuss religious liberty from the perspective of faith-based nonprofits. In this guest episode, Napa Legal's Senior Counsel Frank DeVito is joined by John Ketcham, Senior Fellow and Director of Cities at the Manhattan Institute. Join them for a discussion of Missionaries of St. John the Baptist v. Frederic, a case pending cert before the U.S. Supreme Court. This case can have major implications in determining whether the complaints of neighbors can overrule the rights of religious organizations to use their land for religious purposes. In this episode, we discuss: 1:44 John's background growing up Catholic in New York City and working at the Manhattan Institute 5:56 Manhattan Institute Amicus Briefs 7:20 Missionaries of St. John the Baptist v. Frederic Amicus Brief with Napa Legal 10:08 Background of the case 14:45 RLUIPA 21:21 What would best case scenario look like? 22:40 What would worst case scenario look like? 24:00 Why should we generally be in favor of development? 28:29 Other projects by John 34:10 Conclusion For more about Napa Legal and our work, visit our website here: https://www.napalegalinstitute.org/ For more of the Napa Legal Podcast, visit our site here: https://www.napalegalinstitute.org/th... The Napa Legal Podcast, May 29, 2026 #freedomofreligion #religiousliberty