Sen. Rick Santorum Related coverage Bar group gives Alito highest rating

WASHINGTON -- In a step that could shore up support from his conservative base but might carry political risks, Sen. Rick Santorum will speak Sunday at a controversial conservative Christian rally bolstering support for Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito on the eve of the judge's confirmation hearings.

Mr. Santorum, R-Pa., will join Christian leaders, including the Rev. Jerry Falwell of Liberty University and James Dobson of Focus on the Family, at Justice Sunday III, which will be telecast and webcast to millions of viewers from the Greater Exodus Baptist Church in Philadelphia.

Mr. Falwell yesterday said speakers would address what they view as the "disappearance of religious freedom in many corners" of America and what he described as "hostility" toward Christianity exemplified by limits on public references to Christmas and God.

The program will highlight Judge Alito's record on religious expression during his tenure on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia. In a 1999 case promoted by conservatives, for example, Judge Alito authored an opinion for the court stating that it was constitutional for Jersey City to have a holiday display at its City Hall that included a creche and a menorah.

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins said Mr. Santorum was invited to speak because he has been a leader on issues of religious expression and religious freedom during his Senate tenure.

The two previous iterations of Justice Sunday created controversy because participants' remarks about "activist judges" who had handed down decisions allowing gay marriage or criticizing prayer in school were viewed by some as polarizing and inflammatory.