Two religious schools from Maine argued in federal court on Tuesday against the state’s anti-discrimination law, which they say infringes on their constitutional right to free exercise of religion. To what extent Maine can allow religious schools to follow their practices — many of which uphold traditional Christian values and can be inherently exclusionary to

Crosspoint Church in Bangor and St. Dominic Academy in Auburn asked the court to stop a Maine law that prevents some private religious schools from receiving public funds.

On Tuesday, a legal battle in Maine moved to the federal court of appeals in Boston, bringing a fight over public funding in religious schools one step closer to the United States Supreme Court. The question at the heart of both cases is,