Religion in American Society: Law, Culture, and Freedom | With Guest Andrea Picciotti-Bayer

In this episode of the Napa Legal Podcast, we’re joined by Andrea Picciotti-Bayer to examine religious liberty, the First Amendment, and the role of faith-based nonprofits in American society today. We discuss why religious individuals and organizations must be free from government coercion to carry out their missions, and how protecting religious liberty benefits civil society and the most vulnerable among us.

Key Moments:

• 0:50 Introduction and Andrea's work and background with the Conscience Project
• 7:10 The inclusion of religion in public life and freedom from government coercion today
• 12:08 Inclusion by exclusion: when poor policy hurts the most vulnerable
• 15:40 The importance of stories and using faith to motivate heroism
• 19:26 Originalism, the First Amendment, and the Founders' vision of religious liberty in education
• 26:25 Responding to critics of protecting religious liberty
• 31:05 What to watch for in the coming years

Cases Discussed

- Trinity Lutheran v. Columbia- Carson v. Makin- Fulton v. City of Philadelphia- Kennedy v. Bremerton- Lemon v. Kurtzman- Dier v. Landry

Key Quotation from Andrea: "Faith is not an intruder in public life; it’s a part of our civic DNA."

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The Napa Legal Podcast, January 15, 2026