There’s no denying that last year was rough for advocates of church-state separation. But there were reasons to celebrate as well. Here’s a look at the year that was – the top 10 church-state stories from 2018 and how they might affect 2019.

The Alaska Superior Court ruled in October that Kenai Peninsula Borough violated the religious-freedom protections of the Alaska Constitution by restricting the faith traditions from which residents may offer invocations during public meetings.

The Pennsylvania House has a longstanding practice of opening its sessions with invocations, which are often delivered by guests from the community. In 2014, several nontheists in the state began making requests to take part in that practice. After they were turned down, they asked Americans United for help.