Posted on 04/23/2014 6:54:56 AM PDT by xzins
The U.S. Supreme Court will soon rule on the constitutionality of prayer at public meetings. But a new survey finds U.S. voters clearly favor prayer – as long as the public prayer is generic and not specifically Christian.
Fairleigh Dickinson University’s PublicMind survey asked about attitudes on high profile cases before the court, includingGreece v. Galloway. That case addresses whether elected officials can open public meetings with religiously specific prayers, such as praying in Jesus’ name.
A Jew and an atheist brought suit in Greece, N.Y., saying the Christian prayers excluded many citizens and violated the Constitution, which bans government establishment of religion. Even when the town began inviting non-Christians to give invocations, the “establishment” issue remained a question.
“(Greece officials) were trying their best not to offend anyone by making prayers as generic as possible. In this survey we asked if this is an acceptable way to approach the problem. Three in four people said yes,” said Peter Woolley, professor of political science at Fairleigh Dickinson in New Jersey.
Most registered voters (73 percent) said “prayer at public meetings is fine as long as the public officials are not favoring some beliefs over others.” And 23 percent said “public meetings shouldn’t have any prayers at all because prayers by definition suggest one belief or another.”
The key, however, is that this case centers on generic prayer that is “harmless, if not uplifting,” said Woolley. “Americans have become more used to the idea that one denomination is not necessarily privileged over another. Even unbelievers — atheists who would say prayer ‘is not for me’ — approved” of allowing nonspecific prayer.
While support for prayer was similar for every age group and both men and women, the most religiously observant were the most inclined to approve of it.
Among those who attend religious services (aside from funerals or weddings) at least once or twice a month, 86 percent would allow prayer, 11 percent would not.
For those who attend services a few times a year, 73 percent support it but opposition doubles to 26 percent.
But even those who seldom or never go to church backed the prayers at public meetings, with 58 percent approving and 36 percent opposing.
Surveys continually find prayer in general — not specified by denominational distinctions — is hugely popular.
Gallup, Barna Research and Pew Research Center all find that about 8 in 10 Christians (Catholics, Protestants and Mormons) say they pray at least weekly, as do Muslims and Hindus.
But there still remains a vocal minority of people who oppose having officials call on God before calling a public meeting to order.
The Freedom from Religion Foundation, the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State often send letters to legislators and public officials relaying citizen complaints and asking them to drop the prayer practices.
The FFRF view is that “government prayer is unnecessary, inappropriate and divisive.”
First, there are no Christian denominations that have prayers that automatically excise the name of Jesus. There are very few who are willing to do that just to appear neutral in public.
Since there is no such denomination, then these voters are IN FAVOR of the Government enforcing religious rules about a made up religion, the “no name of Jesus religion.”
In sum, if the government makes up a religion and it is enforced in public places, then it is “an establishment of religion.”
Second, if it is enforced against those who wouldn’t endorse the excising the name of Jesus’ name, then it is forbidding “free exercise.”
Let me repeat: There is NO Christian religion that endorses excising the name of Jesus. It would all be “made up religion” to appease the government.
The correct answer is the answer given by the Founding Fathers: everyone just be yourself, and everyone else just learn to accept it. The Founders figured that was a better tradeoff than religion police....as these voters are suggesting. They want you to follow the “made up government religion” or not get to pray.
What would be the purpose behind prayer then?
What part of “nor the free exercise thereof” don’t they understand?
What do people think they are praying to? Americans have been so conditioned to not offend anyone that they don’t want to face the hard truth that religions are different, comprise different beliefs and can’t be combined into some type of non-denominational mush to make everyone happy.
If it’s a make believe government religion, then I guess it’s a make believe government deity, too.
IOW, it’s a form of religion that denies the power of God and substitutes the rules of government.
It boggles my mind that they don’t see the free exercise issue here, G Larry.
Unfortunately, we give Islam religious status even though it is a political system and not a religion. Wiccan is another fruitcake so called religion. Hindu is not a religion.
Christians and Jews...that's all there is!!
So, by this logic, wouldn't the lack of a prayer endorse atheism or agnosticism, both of which are favored religions of the Godless left?
In a saner time when I was involved in a local government, the problem was solved simply by rotating the prayer leader. While many, but not all, of the Christian clergy avoided mentioning Jesus when they led the prayer, a respected local rabbi who was called upon to lead the prayer in early December, invoked his name and won a lot of friends.
Matthew 10:33
English Standard Version (ESV)
33 but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.
I would just have a pot and a drawing when scheduling the annual public meetings.
If a minister wants his name in the pot, then he/she adds it.
They pull out a name and what they get is what they get.
This is how you end up with insane situations where a coach (Clemson’s Dabo) is accused by the FFRF of violating the so-called separation of church and state. Can you imagine any of the founding fathers saying that people should not pray before a town hall meeting or a football game?
Exactly....they are requiring real religions to violate their own beliefs to be part of their make-believe-government-religion.
The Founders prayed everywhere they went at every meeting they had. They had chaplains. And they just let the prayers be themselves. Tolerate is better, easier, and cheaper than police.
Prayer without Jesus is not prayer!
Atheists are demanding that the government confirm “atheism” as America’s
one and only ESTABLISHED religion.
That is UN-Constitutional!
And that’s just crazy!
What would be the purpose behind prayer then?
Exactly!
Atheists are demanding that the government confirm “atheism” as America’s
one and only ESTABLISHED religion.
That is UN-Constitutional!
And besides, that’s just crazy!
Jesus outlined how we should pray.
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