The rest of the story on prayer

To the editor:

On July 22 Rev. Roger Scovil illustrated his testimony on the prayer issue before Baker City Council by pointing out that at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787, Benjamin Franklin, the most revered figure of his age, proposed that each session begin with prayer. Franklin reminded conventioneers that during the war for independence from Britain, they had often prayed for guidance. He moved that every morning they begin by "imploring the assistance of Heaven."

Like Franklin, Councilor Terry Schumacher said, "We need (God's) help to make the right decisions." A like comment was made by contractor Bill Harvey.

As Paul Harvey says, here's the rest of the story. Rev. Scovil omitted the fact that Franklin's motion died for lack of a second. Our nation's Founding Fathers chose not to mix religion with their arduous task of crafting a constitution that became the envy of the world. Not once during their nearly four months of work did they begin their daily deliberations with prayer.

Nor did Baker City Council begin its meetings with prayer during the first 116 years after incorporation in 1874. The practice of beginning meetings with an invocation began around 1980 at the suggestion of Mayor Bill Gwilliam. When I became city councilor in 1999, I objected to the prayers. And we all know that story. Then, about four years ago, after Americans United for Separation of Church and State threatened to sue if sectarian prayers continued, a city employee, at the request of Mayor Charles Hofmann, said generic, nonsectarian prayers.

Since the present city council took office one and a half years ago, as Andrew Dickison correctly pointed out, the invocations are often not really invocations (prayer) at all. Instead the meetings open with all manner of so-called "inspirational" messages, such as poem reading, moments of silence, musical entertainment, prayers, and occasionally sectarian prayers invoking the name of Jesus. (In the past year Councilor Schumacher is the only councilor saying, or inviting persons to say, sectarian prayers.) Honoring the Herald's 350-word limit, I'll write another letter in a couple of weeks showing that sectarian prayers at city council meetings are unconstitutional.

Gary Dielman

Baker City