WASHINGTON — In an argument marked by sharp exchanges on the sweep of its 2015 decision establishing a right to same-sex marriage, the Supreme Court on Wednesday considered whether Philadelphia may bar a Catholic agency that refuses to work with same-sex couples from screening potential foster parents.
The argument, heard by telephone, came about a month after Justice Clarence Thomas, joined by Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., appeared to urge the court to reconsider the 2015 decision, Obergefell v.
Hodges, saying it stigmatized people of faith who objected to same-sex marriage. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., who dissented from the 2015 decision, asked a lawyer for the agency, Catholic Social Services, whether her client’s position, rooted.