Lord's Prayer in Municipal Council?

[Sibling Lambicus the Toluous]

So... in Ontario, a number of municipalities open their council meetings with the Lord's Prayer.  An organization called "Secular Ontario" has been sending letters to these councils and to newspapers to get them to change the practice.  Here's an excerpt from one article:

Each meeting of regional council begins with the Lord's Prayer, but that custom may soon be changing.
The practice of reciting the Lord's Prayer at the outset of each session has been referred to the Region's finance and administration committee for review, precipitated by a letter from Mr. Henry Beissel, president of Secular Ontario.
"It has come to our attention that your council engages in a Christian ritual at the commencement of council meetings by reciting 'the Lord's Prayer'," Mr. Beissel wrote.
The Ontario Court of Appeal ruled in the case of Freitag versus the Town of Penetanguishene, in 1996, that this practice is illegal and a violation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.  In that case, the appellant was a non-Christian resident who regularly attended town council meetings.
He said the practice of reciting the prayer made him uncomfortable and intimidated.
Mr. Beissel wrote that the ruling applies to all Ontario municipalities and thus the Region of Durham is violating Ontario law.
"We (Secular Ontario) are sure you will agree that it is totally unacceptable in a democratic society for an official government body to act illegally," Mr. Beissel wrote.
"We expect that you will therefore want to put an end to the offending practice immediately."

Various councils have come up with responses ranging from leaving things as-is, to replacing the Lord's Prayer with a non-denominational prayer, to a moment of silence, to dropping the practice of prayer/reflection altogether.

What do you folks think?  Do municipal councils in other parts of the world have a similar practice?

[DeadPoet]

Skip it entirely. Show a little bit of respect to god and keep him out of Ontarian bureaucracy  ...

I mean.... it's just a council meeting, not a Higher Task for which Otherworldy Powers have to be mobilized...

[The Meromorph]

A moment of silent reflection, specifically on our responsibilities.

[Bob in a quantum-state-of-faith]

As a non-Christian, I can certainly relate to the fellow mentioned in the letter.

It's an arrogant practice, and an assumption on the part of those who perpetuate those things.

They may think of it as "witnessing" but in fact, it makes them out as fools--and does more to turn people away than anything else.

[Bluenose]

I am a staunch advocate of the doctrine of the separation of church and state.  Whilst no doubt some or even many councillors may have their decision making informed by their religious beliefs, they have absolutely no right IMHO to in effect impose those beliefs on others, either councillors or members of the public, through the act of participating in a ritual of one particular religious group at the beginning of the meeting and by implication attempting to bring the following meeting under the imprimatur of that religious group.

Government is for all citizens, not just those of a particular faith.  IMHO this practice comes under the banner of what I have heard called the tyranny of the majority.

Sibling Bluenose

[Sibling Chatty]

I say skip the whole thing.

A moment of silent reflection WILL eventually be abused...been there, seen that.

It's a business-of-the-political-area meeting, so get down to business.

[Sibling Lambicus the Toluous]

I didn't want to influence people's opinions earlier, but now that people have had a chance to respond, here's what I wrote to my mayor (who is also a Councillor at the Regional level) on the issue:

I recently read an article on durhamregion.com stating that it is the practice of the Regional Council to recite the Lord's Prayer as part of its meetings.  As a resident of Durham Region and a member of the larger public, I find this troubling and inappropriate on several levels.

I believe that in this day and age, it is important for our public institutions to be secular; they should reflect what is common to all residents and not just a select group.  Regardless of the personal beliefs of the Councillors, the Regional Municipality is, or at least should be, a secular institution.

Further, even in the Christian context, I think it is inappropriate to make a show of prayer in this manner.  The Gospel teaches to pray in secret and not to be seen by men.  You were quoted in the durhamregion.com article as saying that you did not want to "abandon the history of this chamber and the history of this country," but a Christian history that is ignorant of Christian teaching is, at best, hollow.

Most compelling for me, though, is that the practice of reciting the Lord's Prayer by municipal councils has been declared illegal in Ontario.  As protectors of the public trust, at a bare minimum I would expect that you and your fellow members of Council would not deliberately break the law.

For these reasons, I hope that you will act to end the recititation of the Lord's Prayer by Council.  Personal beliefs can and do enrich the lives of individuals, but this practice in a secular forum is one that is inherently negative.

Sincerely,

The scariest thing I've seen, though, is the poll our local paper ran on the issue: the respondents were around 98% in favour of keeping the Prayer as is.

[goat starer]

I will suspend judgement until the Lord himself tells me that it is actually his prayer and not just a prayer some geezer made up and claimed belonged to the Lord.

[Bob in a quantum-state-of-faith]

The scariest thing I've seen, though, is the poll our local paper ran on the issue: the respondents were around 98% in favour of keeping the Prayer as is.

Aye, and there is the reason enough' for them to be'a keepin' the thing.

For, as ye have pointed out, they are not doin' it outa' Christian Duty, but outa' the desire to puff theyself' up in t'eyes of they constituency.

Political jobs ARE a popularity contest, after all...