Prayer in schools and public bodies has been a contentious issue for decades.
The age-old debate has resurfaced at the N.C. General Assembly, but it’s not dividing lawmakers along the typical partisan lines.
The N.C. chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union submitted a formal letter of complaint to legislators earlier this month, citing concerns about the sectarian nature of prayers in both the N.C. House and Senate.
Katy Parker, legal director of N.C.’s ACLU chapter, said both the House and Senate can start with prayer if the prayers are non-sectarian in nature.
“Non-sectarian means that the prayers cannot refer to a specific deity and cannot make reference to matters or issues particular to a specific situation,” Parker said.
The ACLU contends that Christian prayers violate the U.S. Constitution’s Establishment Clause, which states that governmental bodies cannot endorse one religion more than others.
Sen. Ellie Kinnaird, D-Orange, said there have been past court rulings supporting prayers that don’t reference a particular religion.
“In the past, the chaplain gave really thoughtful nondenominational prayers and was careful not to favor one religion over another,” she said. “It has been ruled that we can start with prayer but it must be more general and inclusive.”
Previous separation of church and state court cases nationwide have produced varying precedents on a case-by-case basis, said William Marshall, a UNC law professor. He said references to God are still common in the U.S.
“The Supreme Court starts out their sessions with ‘God Bless this United States and God Bless this honorable court,’” Marshall said. “So they have never completely abandoned religious invocations.”
However, Kinnaird said prayers in the Senate often go one step further and end with “in the name of Jesus Christ.”
Some Republican legislators claim that the ACLU has a history of pursuing policies that are not representative of many Americans.
“The ACLU has an affinity for pushing a radical, far-left agenda that is out of touch with most North Carolinians,” said House Speaker Thom Tillis, R-Mecklenburg, in a statement.
The ACLU pointed to a recent U.S. Court of Appeals case that upheld the ban of sectarian prayers at Forsyth County Board of Commissioners’ meetings in their letter to legislators. The N.C. chapter asked the legislature to respond to its complaint by Friday.
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