Residents of the Ed Young Senior Citizens Center can pray out loud again before mealtimes after especially cautious company officials raised concerns that the audible prayers over food mostly paid for by federal money might violate the separation of church and state. The center temporarily asked seniors there to observe a moment of silence and pray to themselves instead of aloud.
Port Wentworth Mayor Glenn "Pig" Jones announced the reversal at a news conference at the senior center, the Chronicle said. He provided a statement he said was from Patricia Lyons, president of Senior Citizens Inc. Lyons' statement said the Georgia Department of Human Services, Division of Aging Services had clarified and reversed its position on meal prayer yesterday. According to Lyons, the state had said for years that oral prayer was not permitted in any senior centers.
However, Savannah TV statio WTOC reported yesterday that the state denied any policy against meal prayer was ever in effect.
