The Supreme Court announced that they plan to hear a case exploring the separation of church and state as it applies to prayers held before open public meetings. A U.S. appellate court ruled that the town of Greece, in upstate New York, violated the constitution by opening almost every meeting over an 11-year span with a Christian prayer, according to the Associated Press.
In their ruling, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the town should have attempted to find religious leaders from a broader spectrum of faiths to invite to speak before the meetings.
Two residents of Greece, who are represented by Americans United for Separation of Church and State, have argued that they felt marginalized as non-Christians by the prayers, according to the Washington Post.
In their defense, the town has argued that the Supreme Court has already ruled that the practice of prayer before opening meetings is acceptable under the 1983 case Marsh v. Chambers, when the court ruled that it was acceptable to have a prayer prior to meetings of the Nebraska state legislature.
Supporters of public prayer before meetings argue that it has been in practice since the birth of the nation. Brett Harvey, senior consul for Alliance Defending Freedom, an advocacy group whose aim is "transforming the legal system and advocating for religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage and family," according to their website, argues that a few offended people shouldn't be able to bring down a longstanding tradition.
"A few people should not be able to extinguish the traditions of our nation merely because the heard something they didn't like," Harvey said. "Because the authors of the Constitution invoked God's blessing on public proceedings, this tradition shouldn't suddenly be deemed unconstitutional."
Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, argues that the act of having a prayer before the public meetings is not what is being challenged; instead it is the town failing to include any non-Christian prayers to open their meetings.
"A town council meeting isn't a church service, and it shouldn't seem like one," Lynn said. "Government can't serve everyone in the community when it endorses one faith over others. That sends the clear message that some are second-class citizens based on what they believe about religion."
The case will be heard by the court in the next term which starts in October, a ruling would be expected in June of 2014, according to USA Today.
