The Supreme Court on Monday appeared poised to side with a Catholic nonprofit group that claims Wisconsin unconstitutionally penalized it for practicing religion through acts of mercy rather than preaching from the pulpit.

The Supreme Court on Monday debated how to define religion as it considered a case on a faith-based tax break. The justices generally seemed to think the government officials involved had adopted the wrong approach, but they struggled to identify how best to ensure that only sincere religious actors and organizations can access exemptions.