 Parker has been criticized for using "legal slight of hand" in his decision and for ignoring the complex history, especially in Dedham, between the church and the society.He was also accused of forming his legal opinion of the Dedham church through his experiences at his own Brattle Street Church.The case was a major milestone in the road towards the separation of church and state and led to the Commonwealth formally disestablishing the Congregational Church in 1833.