Catholic Charities in Wisconsin has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a state decision that says it is not entitled to protections as a religious organization.

Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Superior says its operations are deeply imbued by its faith and it should be exempt from having to pay into Wisconsin’s unemployment system, since that money could be better used to help its charitable activities.

But the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled in March that the types of activities Catholic Charities performs are more akin to other service charities and aren’t “typical” religious activities, so it does not qualify as an exempt religious organization. It also hires members of any faith and does not try to evangelize those it serves, the state court ruled.

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“The court held that because Catholic Charities provides services that ‘can be provided by organizations of either religious or secular motivations,’ those services do not have a religious purpose. Put another way, it doesn’t matter if Catholic Charities gives a cup of water in Jesus’ name, because non-religious charities offer cups of water too,” the Catholic outfit said in its petition to the federal justices, filed last week.

Catholic Charities said the case gets at an unresolved issue in constitutional law over what makes an organization religious.

Four states consider an entity’s sincerely held religious beliefs to see if it qualifies for a religious exemption for tax purposes, while four other states — including Wisconsin — decide if an entity’s work is charitable based on whether it is “typical” of a religion, according to the court filing.

The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, representing Catholic Charities Bureau Inc., argues that this split in court analysis is a reason for the justices to weigh in.

The group says that religious organizations like Catholic Charities are having to pay unemployment taxes instead of using that money towards helping the needy.

“It shouldn’t take a theologian to understand that serving the poor is a religious duty for Catholics,” said Eric Rassbach, senior counsel with Becket. “But the Wisconsin Supreme Court embraced the absurd conclusion that Catholic Charities has no religious purpose. We’re asking the Supreme Court to step in and fix that mistake.”

It would take four justices to vote in favor of hearing the dispute, Catholic Charities Bureau Inc. v. State of Wisconsin Labor and Industry Review Commission and State of Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, for oral arguments to be scheduled.

If the case were to be granted, a hearing wouldn’t happen until after the Supreme Court returns from its summer recess in October.

A spokesperson for the Labor & Industry Review Commission, State of Wisconsin said the commission doesn’t comment on pending litigation.