A local public high school in St. Paul, Minnesota is worried about drug usage in the school among the students. In order to curb the problem, the school invites Pastor Brown from St. Mary’s Church in downtown St. Paul, who also has a medical degree and is a leading activist in the Clean Living Organization, which helps in preventing underage drinking and drug abuse.
The pastor begins his speech talking to the student and saying how they should not be doing drugs because they will have serious side effects that can affect their learning and cause them to fall behind in school. Pastor Brown provides specific scientific evidence to back up his speech, including statistics about the susceptibility of teens to certain drugs and the likelihood of overdose and death if they continue to abuse drugs. However, in order to offer another aspect of how drugs harm the students, Pastor Brown explains Christian religious teachings concerning the Theology of the Body and how drugs are a means of destroying one's own body, which they should all consider sacred.
Some of the parents of the children who attend the school complain, claiming that the pastor is preaching religion in a public high school. One particular parent sues the school for intentionally promoting Christianity because the school specifically chose the pastor to speak and therefore was a clear indication of their preference of Christianity. The school argues that the nature of his topic was not religious, and the reason he was selected was also for his record as a medical professional and activist. The local district court sides with the school, but the parent’s appeal goes all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court.