Written by Don ByrdNext month, the U.S. Supreme Court will be hearing oral argument in the church-state case Town of Greece v. Galloway. For the first time in 30 years, the Court will weigh in on the constitutional questions surrounding legislative prayer, official invocations opening government meetings like the city council meetings at issue in this case. The Baptist Joint Committee has long opposed the practice of opening meetings with sectarian prayer, filing a brief with the court in this case detailing that opposition from a religious perspective.
Written by Don ByrdThe government shutdown didn’t stop the U.S. Supreme Court from opening its term yesterday. Among the cases the Court will hear include a challenge to a city council’s practice of opening official meetings with prayer. NPR’s Nina Totenberg looked at the new court session including the prayer case in a piece yesterday. You can listen to it here.
Written by Don ByrdAhead of the arguments, advocates have begun filing friend-of-the-court briefs, including a few high profile groups arguing there’s nothing unconstitutional about local governments opening meetings with sectarian prayer. If you are interested in reading that point of view, here are some links.
Written by Don ByrdThe Supreme Court’s decision earlier this week to take up the issue of legislative prayer for the first time in 30 years leaves many questions about the future of the government prayer balance. Veteran reporter Lyle Deniston considers what this decision likely means in a new essay for Constitution Daily. The Appeals Court used the endorsement test – the view that government action is improper if it gives the appearance of an affiliation or endorsement with a religious perspective – to invalidate the prayer practice of Town of Greece. Is that the problem?
Written by Don ByrdWhether the court of appeals erred in holding that a legislative prayer practice violates the Establishment Clause notwithstanding the absence of discrimination in the selection of prayer-givers or forbidden exploitation of the prayer opportunity.”