US Supreme Court says prayers OK to open government meetings

WASHINGTON – Perhaps taking a step toward dismantling the separation of church and state, the US Supreme Court ruled 5-4 Monday that local governments are allowed to begin meetings with religious prayers.

The case began in Greece, New York with a dispute over Christian  prayers given before town board meetings.  Two town residents said they felt the prayers violated their religious or philosophical views.  One of the residents said she found the prayers “offensive,” “intolerable,” and an affront to a “diverse community.” Those two town residents sued the city.

Since 1999, the monthly town board meetings in Greece, New York, have opened with a roll call, a recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance, and a prayer given by clergy selected from the congregations listed in a local directory. While the prayer program is open to all creeds, nearly all of the local congregations are Christian; thus, nearly all of the participating prayer givers have been too. Respondents, citizens who attend meetings to speak on local issues, filed suit, alleging that the town violated the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause by preferring Christians over other prayer givers and by sponsoring sectarian prayers. They sought to limit the town to “inclusive and ecu- menical” prayers that referred only to a “generic God.” The District Court upheld the prayer practice on summary judgment, finding no impermissible preference for Christianity; concluding that the Christian identity of most of the prayer givers reflected the predominantly Christian character of the town’s congregations, not an official policy or practice of discriminating against minority faiths; finding that the First Amendment did not require Greece to invite clergy from congregations beyond its borders to achieve religious diversity; and rejecting the theory that legislative prayer must be nonsectarian. The Second Circuit reversed, holding that some aspects of the prayer pro- gram, viewed in their totality by a reasonable observer, conveyed the message that Greece was endorsing Christianity.

The Supreme Court reversed the Second Circuit decision, concluding that the town’s prayer practice does not violate the Constitution.  As scotusblog.com described, the court “enlarged the opportunity to deliver such prayers in explicitly religious content and tone, invoking the deity of a given faith” as long a other religions are not “cast in a negative light”.