Sometimes common sense prevails in the court system.

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a World War I-era cross in Maryland did not violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.

The justices voted 7-2 against efforts by atheist and secularist groups who for years have tried to wipe any trace of Christianity from the public arena.

The Bladensburg cross, had been challenged by the American Humanist Association (AHA). Pacific Justice Institute (PJI) filed an amicus brief asking the Supreme Court to take the case. PJI has previously litigated against the AHA over memorials incorporating crosses.

Justice Alito cited a range of recent and historical examples to argue that not only the Bladensburg cross, but many other phrases, symbols, and place names have become such a part of our lives that removing them would show hostility toward religion.

Alito pointed out city names such as Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and Las Cruces, New Mexico, along with numerous California examples – Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Santa Barbara and others. Alito cited the recent fire and rebuilding efforts at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris as a secular society regarding a religious icon as a national symbol.

“This is a major victory for a proper interpretation of the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause,” said Brad Dacus, president of PJI. “The Constitution was never intended to compel government to sterilize symbols of faith and hope from public places of remembrance.”