Federal Appeals Court Upholds Commissioners’ Prayers at Public Meetings
ICC Note: In 2013, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit regarding the commissioners’ prayers before public meetings in North Carolina’s Rowan County. The practice was eventually ruled unconstitutional on the grounds that the prayers were only led by Christians, thereby excluding people of other religions. However, earlier this week, a federal appeals court overturned the decision in a 2-1 vote, noting that prayer led by elected legislators has long been viewed as a constitutional practice in preceding cases.
By Heather Clark
09/20/2016 United States (Christian News Network) – A federal appeals court has upheld the rights of commissioners in one North Carolina county to pray during public meetings, overturning a lower court ruling declaring the invocations in Jesus’ name to be discriminatory.
As previously reported, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and ACLU of North Carolina Legal Foundation (ACLU-NCLF) had filed suit against the Rowan County commissioners in March 2013, complaining that their invocations have asserted that “there is only one way to salvation, and that is Jesus Christ,” and thank the Lord for the “virgin birth,” the “cross at Calvary” and “the resurrection.”
“I want my local government to be open and welcoming to people of all beliefs,” Nan Lund, a local resident who was among three plaintiffs named in the suit, stated in a news release announcing the legal challenge. “But when officials begin a public meeting with prayers that are specific to only one religious viewpoint, I feel unwelcome and excluded.”
In July 2013, federal Judge James A. Beaty Jr., nominated to the bench by then-President Bill Clinton, sided with the ACLU and the three complainants, ordering the commissioners to end their Christian prayer practice while the case moves forward in court.
Two years later, Beaty issued his final decision, declaring the prayers predominantly in Jesus’ name to be unconstitutional.
“The practice fails to be nondiscriminatory, entangles government with religion, and over time, establishes a pattern of prayers that tends to advance the Christian faith of the elected commissioners at the expense of any religious affiliation unrepresented by the majority,” he wrote.