ICC Note: During a recent town hall meeting in the town of Metairie, Louisiana, Michael Sprague, the state chaplain, was met with shouts of opposition when he began leading a prayer. Protestors shouted out phrases such as “Separation of church and state,” and eventually began to settle down until Sprague mentioned the name of Jesus, reigniting the shouting. Sprague continued in prayer in spite of the ruckus, and has stated that although he is not upset about the incident, he is saddened by the hostility toward Christianity in the nation.
By Heather Clark
02/28/2017 United States (Christian News Network) – Some attendees of a town hall meeting in Metairie, Louisiana came unhinged on Wednesday as they shouted down a chaplain who sought to present a prayer in the name of Jesus.
According to reports, members of a group called Indivisible, which opposes President Trump, attended the town hall meeting led by Republican U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, just as many liberal protesters have been doing in recent weeks across the country.
An overflow crowd packed the East Jefferson Parish Library, far exceeding the expected 100 participants that usually turn out for town hall events. The gathering wasn’t supposed to start until 3:30 p.m., but some arrived as early as 11:30 a.m. and waited for several hours for their chance to vent.
Cassidy had scheduled the meeting to talk to constituents about issues such as healthcare, the economy and immigration, and the crowd was even more wound up as the senator didn’t arrive until near 4 p.m. due to spending the afternoon surveying tornado damage in New Orleans.
However, when Louisiana State Chaplain Michael Sprague of the Capitol Commission of Louisiana announced that he would be opening the gathering with prayer, the room became especially raucous as some in attendance began yelling loudly in opposition, “Prayer?!” and “Separation of Church and State!”
After pausing a moment in surveying the chaos in the room, Sprague began to pray, still being interrupted by protesters who talked through the invocation.
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