It's not an overly surprising issue, in many respects.  A Lutheran schoolteacher - through what appears to be a complex variety of steps, lost her 'Call' to her teaching position.  She lost her job, in other words.  She is now suing the congregation, and the Supreme Court is being asked to step in and define what - or who - qualifies as a clergy member and who does not.  The article does an excellent job of clearly delineating what is at stake here - a very critical issue of the separation of church and state, and one that probably more clearly represents the type of threat our forefathers feared most, as opposed to the common fear-mongering rallied today about undue religious influence on our political system.

I would normally at this point be inclined to try and clearly and succinctly explain the LCMS notion of what a 'Call' is and the basis on which Calls can be extended and retracted.  But I'd probably make some serious errors in it, and rather than subject myself to personal ridicule and possible legal action by either overzealous peers or ill-intentioned outsiders, I'll forego it and say that you can find your own LCMS pastor to ask about it.  One of the many nuances is that a Call does not operate the same way as an offer of employment.  A congregation can have some staff that are Called, and some that are employed.  The difference lies in - among other things - the grounds under which a Called staff person can be released from their position (as well as how they come into their position).  

It's complicated.  But it attempts to make clear to all parties involved that the position is unique, it is a ministerial position.  And because ministry sometimes (oftentimes?) involves saying things that people are not particularly thrilled to hear (such as, 'you're a sinner and you need to seek forgiveness and alter your ways'), the position needs to be protected from the arbitrary nature of secular employment, where a manager, a board of elders, or a congregational council could simply decide that Pastor So-and-so is not desired to be pastor any more and they're going to find a new one.

The impact of having the government involved in this process is massive.  If the State is restrained from acquiring the authority to determine who is and is not a minister, it will be a massive support of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.  If it is not restrained, it will be yet another dangerous step towards not simply the regulation of organized religion by secular authorities, but the eventual elimination of it.  

Hopefully, we won't have to find out whether or not my prediction is true.