A story in last week’s issue of the Texas Observer is drawing attention across the blogosphere to a militaristic Christian organization called Repent Amarillo who are dedicated to eliminating anything they deem anti-Christian through the use of intercessory prayer (aka “spiritual warfare”) and witnessing “soldier groups”. Their first successful mission was harassing a private married-couples-only swingers club out of existence.

Repent Amarillo became an almost-constant presence, shouting through bullhorns, blasting Christian music, haranguing club members, following swingers in vehicles and sticking video cameras into people’s faces. The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission has been called out twice. Police records show that nearby businesses have called frequently with noise complaints. Repent even showed up on occasion when the Route 66 building was rented out for non-swinger events. “They have been here every time we open our doors, regardless of what kind of functions we have, whether I’m down here doing maintenance, cleaning, whatever,” Mac says. “They don’t have a life. Well, I guess we are their lives. We’re their blood. At three or four in the morning, we’ll open the door, and there they are. They come waddling out of their vehicles with their cameras.”

Lives and livelihoods were destroyed, and local officials took a decidedly “hands off” approach to their borderline legal tactics. So with this “victory” under their belt, who are they going after next? It’s hard to say since they have so many targets. But in a television interview from last year, it’s clear that their leader, David Grisham, has a special obsession with Paganism.

If you look at their “warfare map”, you’ll see a whole category dedicated to “Occult Witchcraft”, which includes a local nature center, a UU church, palm readers, and shops that sell Pagan “paraphernalia”. So expect a campaign against a relatively defenseless target, maybe a local psychic, sooner rather than later.

This sort of active militancy isn’t unique. Colorado’s New Life Church (formerly headed by disgraced pastor Ted Haggard), during its ascension into power, orchestrated a cleansing of Colorado Springs, driving Witches and New Agers from their homes with tactics very much akin to Repent Amarillo’s.

“He move the church to a strip mall. There was a bar, a liquor store, New Life Church, a massage parlor. His congregation spilled out and blocked the other businesses. He set up chairs in the alley. He strung up a banner: SIEGE THIS CITY FOR ME, signed JESUS. He assigned everyone in the church names, taken from the phone book, they were to pray for. He sent teams to pray in front of the homes of supposed witches -- in one month, ten out of fifteen of his targets put their houses on the market. His congregation of “prayer-walked” nearly every street of the city.”

Repent Amarillo is a fringe group, but the New Life Church was once a fringe group. We once dismissed the rabid prayer-warriors that clustered together in a New Apostolic Reformation (born in Colorado Springs) , until we saw one of their number gain the Republican vice presidential nomination. We can no longer ignore these militaristic “prayer warriors” simply because their numbers are small, that just empowers them to pick off weak targets (like the swingers) and grow in status and power.

That doesn’t mean we need to out-militant them, but it does mean that Pagan communities, especially small and vulnerable Pagan communities, need to prepare for the coming storm. They need to come out of the “broom closet” now to their employers and family before they are outed by these “soldiers”, they need to be prepared when the faux-military trucks and loud-speakers roll up to their events, they need to know the law and how to use it, and they need to be ready to network with the larger Pagan community and other sympathetic minority faiths so we can get the word out, show solidarity, give aid, and withstand these bully tactics. They may have come for the swingers first, but if we show no shame, and stand up, it can end with the Pagans.

I have some updates and announcements of note for you on this Saturday afternoon.

Is The First Amendment for Monotheists Only: Let’s start off with some more information concerning Patrick McCollum’s legal battle over California’s “five faiths” policy. I have here, available for download, the entire complaint, which shows that it was filed as a class action alongside several Pagan inmates. Not, as past media coverage has implied, by McCollum alone.

“The two-tier system inherent in the Five State-Sanctioned Faiths Policy creates a lack of resources and denial of access, which denies Wiccan/Pagan inmates the ability to participate in essential religious ceremonies and perform religious rites mandated by their faith. Chaplains of the Five State-Sanctioned Faiths who are hired are often hostile to Wiccan/Pagan religions, yet are called on to oversee Wiccan/Pagan religious life because of the absence of Wiccan/Pagan chaplains. In many cases, the Five State Sanctioned Faiths Chaplains discriminate against the Wiccan/Pagans when forced into such roles and prioritize the needs of the adherents of their own faiths above the needs of the Wiccan/Pagans.”

The complaint also lists the various discriminatory actions against Pagan inmates and McCollum perpetrated by the California correctional system. In addition, I was provided a copy of a document that proves the California Department of Correction’s key official and witness committed perjury before the court, regarding the most key components of the state’s case against Pagans. Finally, I have a copy of another amicus brief in support of McCollum that includes the support of several religious and chaplaincy organizations, including such Pagan organizations as Cherry Hill Seminary, Covenant of the Goddess, and The Aquarian Tabernacle Church.

Relevant Documents:

• Patrick M. McCollum; et al., v. California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation; et al.
• Defendants Concede That They Made Misrepresentations About The Application Of Any Criteria (copy).
• Amicus Curiae by Rev. Charles Gibbs, Executive Director of the United Religions Initiative, Rev. Paul Chaffee founding Executive Director of the Interfaith Center at the Presidio, Diana L. Eck, Director of the Pluralism Project at Harvard University, James A. Donahue, President of the Graduate Theological Union, The Covenant of the Goddess, Cherry Hill Seminary, Rev. Carol Hovis, Executive Director of the Marin Interfaith Council, The Institute of Buddhist Studies, American Correctional Chaplains Association, The American Catholic Correctional Chaplains Association, Willam E. Lesher, Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions, The Interfaith Council of Contra Costa County, Maha ElGenaidi, founder of the Islamic Networks Group, The Aquarian Tabernacle Church, and Professor Michael York.

It’s becoming increasingly clear that there’s a very good reason why the State of California wants to deny McCollum standing, because if this goes to trial it could potentially explode into a huge scandal, and cost several officials their jobs. As always, I’ll keep you posted regarding the latest developments.

Pagan Benefit CD for Haiti: PaganFM! and Circle Sanctuary are teaming up to release a benefit compilation album with the proceeds going towards recovery and rebuilding efforts in Haiti.

“Pagan musicians and bands from Australia to Canada are taking part; some are very well-known, others are up and coming, and still others are well-established but have more limited audiences. The music on the album ranges from folk, to rock to ethnic and beyond. This album will be an opportunity for each of them to use their talents and skills to open the hearts of listeners across the planet, encouraging everyone to unite in purpose.”

Tentative release date is the first week in March. Once I know more concerning a track-listing or purchasing information, I’ll let you know. For more information, contact Deirdre Hebert of PaganFM!.

Sectarian Prayer in North Carolina: On Thursday a federal judge ruled that using sectarian prayer to open a North Carolina county board of commissioners meeting violates the First Amendment. This comes after a magistrate judge issued a similar ruling on the same case back in November.

“The Supreme Court has also emphasized that such legislative prayers must not advance a particular faith or belief, because to do so would have the effect of affiliating the Government with that particular faith or belief in violation of the Establishment Clause,” U.S. District Judge James A. Beaty Jr. wrote.

As I reported previously, several North Carolina counties have been anxiously watching this case, wondering if it would interfere with their own sectarian opening prayers. It now looks like they too will have to alter their practices, or else face expensive litigation on a legal issue that isn’t trending in their favor. North Carolina has been host to any number of legal issues lately that focus on a Christian majority misusing its power, could this be the start of a shift away from that trend?

That’s all I have for now, have a great day!

Top Story: Hey, it happens to the best of us sometimes. Apparently around 300 Pagan revelers showed up to Stonehenge for the Winter Solstice a day early, under the mistaken assumption that the date is fixed on the calendar.

“A crowd of around 300 people, wearing traditional costume, met at the mystical stone circle on Monday morning to mark the rising of the sun on the shortest day of the year. But unfortunately their calculations were slightly out meaning they had in fact arrived 24 hours prematurely … A spokesman for English Heritage said: ‘About 300 people turned up a day early on Monday morning. We took pity on them and opened the stone circle so they could celebrate anyway. They were a day early but no doubt had a wonderful time as well.’”

While this has inspired some snark, it also provides a helpful reminder that the solstices (and equinoxes) are moving targets, and that you should always check before inviting 300 of your closest friends to frolic at the stones.

In Other News: Mistakenly early-bird Pagans weren’t the only bit of Pagan-oriented solstice coverage going on, the South Yorkshire Star interviews 82-year-old Wiccan Elder Patricia Crowther (one of, if not the, last living High Priestesses initiated directly by Gerald Gardner) for the holiday and finds her remarkably well-preserved.

“Patricia’s appearance – a full head of thick curls, barely wrinkled skin, and a razor-sharp mind – belies her years. “On my natal chart the moon is in Gemini, which is the sign of youth and the young-at-heart, and I know that has something to do with it,” she says. Her home is filled with unusual ornaments, most of which represent figures from mythology or the Goddess herself. There are also dozens of pictures of Patricia as a glamorous young woman. One particularly striking image is that of Patricia sitting naked on a stool for her initiation. “That’s what you have to do when you’re initiated – you go as you were born into life,” she explains. “There’s nothing dirty about it.” As with any qualification, becoming a High Priestess takes time and training.”

Crowther has a new book, “Covensense”, that was released this year. According to one review it contains some “narrow convictions” that will please some BTWs, and frustrate some of the more eclectic Wiccans out there. Personally, I think it’s wonderful that she’s still writing books, no matter how opinionated they might be.

Turning from Solstice-related stories for a moment, I want to quickly highlight two interviews with Pagan-friendly band Faith and the Muse, who’s latest Shinto-inspired album, “Ankoku Butoh”, was a top pick in my year-end best-of list. First Liz Ohanesian of the LA Weekly chats with them about the new album, then gets them to pick their favorite supernatural J-Horror films.

“Japan has one of the oldest traditions of ghost tales, even as far back as 1776, scholar and artist Toriyama Sekien attempted to categorize them in his illustrated series of collections of ghosts and spirits. But their origins can be found even earlier, and coincide with oral tales of Nature spirits – these are actually classic Goddess tales, found not only in Japanese Shinto belief, but in Celtic, Nordic and even Native American mythology – all the same foundation of the consequences that await when one messes with Nature. J-Horror has its very own Nature Mother, with snow-white skin and unbelievably long black hair, the vengeful spirit of the Woman Wronged.”

It’s an interesting-sounding round-up of films, especially for those who thought J-Horror began and ended with “Ringu”. For more Faith & The Muse goodness, and to order a copy of “Ankoku Butoh”, check out their official web site.

The Philadelphia Daily News has a cautionary tale about getting into arguments over religion. It seems that after two men had an argument over whose tradition of Santeria was better, one decided to end the argument permanently with a sawed-off shotgun.

“Hernandez, of Camac Street, North Philadelphia, shot Luis Freire, 55, because they had argued over whose version of the Afro-Caribbean religion Santeria was better, according to the statement, which the prosecution presented as evidence. “Unfortunately, in this day and age, it’s a sad commentary that killings happen over disputes ranging from heated arguments about religion to minor disputes over someone looking at someone the wrong way,” said Assistant District Attorney Brian M. Zarallo.”

Needless to say, Christian Hernandez’s strain of Santeria, whatever it was, won’t be well-served by having a convicted murderer in its ranks. It certainly makes the Internet flame-wars and rampant snark within the Pagan community seem sedate by comparison.

In a final note, the Suwanee, Georgia, school board is wrestling with how to handle public invocations after two substitute teachers, both Wiccans, asked for fair and equal treatment. This led to rumors that invocations would be eliminated entirely, an aim that was denied by the couple.

“Locals John and Rene Checkett addressed board members Tuesday and noted it was in no way their “aim or goal to remove prayer from our school system.” A story in last Friday’s Democrat quoted Rene Checkett to that effect, after rumors to the contrary drew a standing-room only crowd to a scheduled Dec. 15 board meeting. That meeting was canceled due to lack of public notice. The issue, Rene Checkett explained, was fair treatment for those with minority religious views. The couple, both Wiccans, met with Supt. Jerry Scarborough and board chair Jerry Taylor behind closed doors Friday to make their case for fair and equal treatment, particularly in regard to district policies. Both Checketts are substitute teachers. Taylor addressed a full crowd at the 6 p.m. meeting and made clear the district’s intent to handle the matter. “As a school district we need to adopt a policy that deals with religious activities in our school system that adheres to the rights of everyone based on the law of the land, which protects everyone,” Taylor said.”

The school board is going to be unveiling a new policy on public invocations in January, and it should be interesting to see how they address the concerns of religious minorities without causing an uproar with the local Christians.

That’s all I have for now, have a great day!

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I have a few news items to start off your Saturday, beginning with a story that’s spread like wildfire through the political and religious blogospheres gaining mainstream coverage, and its all about prayer. Specifically its about “imprecatory prayer”, the Christian equivalent to malefic “black” magic (you’re basically asking God to kill, maim, or trouble some person). While there have been a few high-profile imprecatory prayer stories popping up lately, the most recent centers on a meme and line of merchandise urging people to “pray” for President Barack Obama, invoking the biblical Psalm 109:8 “let his days be few; and let another take his office”. It seems rather harmless as imprecatory prayers go until you read the rest of the psalm in question.

“It was, most likely, intended as a joke.  But it isn’t really very funny.  Especially since the next verse reads, “May his children be orphans, and his wife a widow.”  The passage goes on the same way--asking God to pulverize this poor fellow--that he lose all his worldly goods, that his orphans be abandoned, that his father be remembered as a sinner, and finally, that “his memory be cut off from the earth.” Thus, the “Prayer for Obama,” does more than anticipate that he leaves office; it entreats God to destroy the president.”

Supporters and opponents of this prayer are battling it out at Cafe Press, with stores being removed and reinstated. Meanwhile, pundits are split on whether this is harmless fun, or yet another sign that far-right Christianity is coming unglued and “trawling for assassins”. How should Pagans and occultists, many of whom believe in the power of magic and intention, react to these sort of stories? Harmless? Or the beginning of a particularly nasty egregore?

Turning from prayer to more material conflicts over belief, Chas Clifton reports on a Russian Orthodox priest who was recently murdered in his church. 34-year-old Daniil Sysoyev was missionary who bragged of converting 80 Muslims personally, and wrote several books critical of Islam, gaining many death-threats in the process. But while this seems a rather open-and-shut case of a Russian Muslim taking revenge against a firebrand converter of Muslims, authorities are also looking at other groups, like Russian Pagans.

“Sysoyev also worked with former members of religious sects and wrote a book on Seventh Day Adventists and Jehovahs’ Witnesses. He also spoke out against nationalists and Stalinists, whom he criticized on his blog for ignoring the murder of innocent people.”

None of the articles specifically mentions Pagans when they mention “various religious sects”, but the ABC article links the phrase to another report they did on Russian Pagans, so they must know something we don’t. Clifton points out that Russian Pagans do come into direct conflict with the Russian Orthodoxy and “are more likely to have their own line of “blood and soil” rhetoric and to claim that they represent the true spirituality of their people”. All that said, I’m siding with Occam’s razor on this one, so the Russian Pagans and hard-liner Stalinists most likely have little to worry about during the investigation.

In a final note, it looks like “Agora”, which centers on the life (and death) of Neoplatonist pagan philosopher Hypatia, has finally found an American distributor and will hit theaters in early 2010.

“Alejandro Amenabar’s intellectual epic that had sat without a U.S. buyer for six months, has found a stateside home. Newmarket Films has picked up U.S. rights to the Rachel Weisz starrer and is prepping a release for the first half of 2010.”

Distribution deals finally materialized after the film starting doing far better than expected in European markets. So we’ll finally get a chance to see “Agora” on the big screen, anyone want to place bets on if/when it will gain American protesters?

Just a few items to start off your week, beginning with a rather tragic update on the James A. Ray sweat-lodge death controversy. Chas Clifton alerts us that a third victim has succumbed to injuries sustained while in the sweat-lodge.

“An Arizona homicide investigation now includes three deaths after a woman died more than a week after participating in a sweat lodge ceremony that hospitalized nearly two dozen people. Liz Neuman of Minnesota died Saturday at a Flagstaff hospital, Yavapai County sheriff’s spokesman Dwight D’Evelyn said. The 49-year-old suffered multiple organ damage during the Oct. 8 ceremony at a resort near Sedona, a resort town 115 miles north of Phoenix that draws many in the New Age spiritual movement. Authorities were treating all three deaths as homicides, but no charges have been filed.”

According to the report, Neuman was a true-believer in Ray’s teachings, attending several of his workshops and leading a local Ray-centric discussion group. One wonders how long before Ray’s time gallivanting to speaking engagements and describing these deaths as a “test” for him will come to an end, and he’s brought in for questioning.

Turning to something a bit more pleasant the Pagans for Archeology blog interviews scholar Susan Greenwood concerning her upcoming book “The Anthropology of Magic”.

“When Berg first invited me to write a book on anthropology and magic I didn’t initially think much about it as a project, but after a while I realized that as an undergraduate, and as a postgraduate doctoral student, I’d really struggled to find anything that tackled the issue of the experience of magic. Since childhood, I had always felt a sense of magic – the thrill of a thunderstorm, the fascination with being in nature, and the ‘make-believe’ of creating stories in my head. When I was older I had explored witchcraft and went to university as a mature student to find out more about my magical experiences. During a final year anthropology and sociology project on women’s spirituality I realized that I wanted to explore magic through PhD research (this ended up as Magic, Witchcraft and the Otherworld). During my time of studying I found books that were helpful in some ways but nothing that really dealt with the issues of studying the experience of magic. I wrote The Anthropology of Magic in the hope that it might help students and others to think about magic as an aspect of consciousness – it was the book that I’d wanted when I first started studying anthropology.”

The whole interview is well worth a read, and you may also want to check out Greenwood’s previous works “The Nature of Magic: An Anthropology of Consciousness“, and “Magic, Witchcraft and the Otherworld: An Anthropology“.

In a final note, we have yet more crazy from our favorite Australian crazy, Danny Nalliah, head of Catch the Fire ministries. I’ve indirectly mentioned him a couple times recently, but this one deserves full credit.

“Media reports of this “prayer offensive” have become the darling of the off-beat section, ridiculing the event and its prayer vs. black spells premise. But this being the age where you can be believe in spells and be totally in touch with media and the interwebs, Catch the Fire has cottoned on to the rest of Australia’s mocking pretty quickly (see here).  In response, Pastor Danny went on radio to explain this act of “spiritual warfare”. He said witches have cast spells on our politicians to make more liberal laws about homosexuals and abortions and if we don’t do something soon (like a mass prayer to ask God to get back on our side) we’re going to have more natural disasters, including bush fires.”

As for his spiritual warfare? Don’t worry, his fifty-member team was vastly outnumbered by protesters sporting slogans like “I am what you are afraid of”, easily counter-acting his malfeasance (though they claim to have The Holy Spirit accomplished “great and mighty things”). So the liberal laws (and brush fires I suppose) will no doubt continue!

That’s all I have for now, have a great day!

Just a few quick items of note for this Wednesday morning.

The Augusta, Georgia alternative weekly Metro Spirit starts off October with the almost obligatory spotlight on local Pagans. The result is a fairly solid run-down of the history of Wicca, with interviews from Michelle Boshears (aka Dawnwalker), who coordinates Circle-sponsored ritual groups on military bases, and the Thelemic Wicca-practicing couple of Jezibell Anat and Joseph Zuchowski.

“Paganism is not a religion,” said Joseph Zuchowski, a Wiccan high priest who resides in Augusta. “Paganism is a blanket term given to a whole series of religions that are mostly Reconstructionist, in the sense that we reconstruct as best we can within the contemporary framework of the world we’re living in the beliefs of our pre-Christian ancestors.”

In a separate piece, Metro Spirit features a comparison of three religious magazines, and the author decides she likes “Witches & Pagans” the best, saying she “didn’t find much to guide me spiritually, but at least now I have more respect for that magazine”. The other two magazines? EnlightenNext (too much Ken Wilber) and Purpose Driven Connection (too Dr. Phil-ly).

Guardian music-blogger Nell Frizzell notices that there’s a whole lot of pagan imagery within pop music lately.

“Triangles? Check. Candles? Check. Stars? Check. Orbs? Check. Flowers? Check. Flowing locks? Check. Forests? Check. That’s more checks than a gingham tablecloth. The last time there were album covers like that, Steeleye Span were still in the top 40. What in the name of faery queen is going on? From Clinic to Little Boots, Florence and the Machine to Pendulum, Bat for Lashes to Wild Beasts, Paganism, it seems, is back.”

While Frizzell stretches her net rather wide in order to include a many “hot” acts as possible, I do agree with the central thesis, that pagan imagery, themes, and sympathies haven’t been this prevalent within music (both popular and underground) since the 1970s. Nor is the Guardian the only one to notice, NPR is discussing the occult significance of Jay-Z’s lyrics and clothing, The Quietus recently interviewed Gary “I was once in Blondie” Lachman about his occult history, the New Yorker profiles the massive (and metaphysical) sound of Sunn O))), and “Pagan rock” gets a brief mention in an article about the possible harmful side-effects of music. Of course if you want to keep track of some of the best Pagan and Pagan-themed music out there, you know where to turn.

It looks like some Christians liked (or hated) Isaac Bonewits’ “Spells for Democracy” so much they decided to steal appropriate the idea for themselves.

Liberty Counsel (a Christian advocacy group) has begun a “prayer in action” initiative it calls “Adopt a Liberal.” It is hoping to change the minds of political leaders it sees as “misguided”. The initiative calls on participants to pick one of the eleven liberals on Liberty Counsel’s list, or to choose some other liberal leader, and then: “Pray earnestly and intensely for them! Pray that the Lord would move upon them and cause them to be the kind of leaders who will encourage others to lead “a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence.” We encourage you to seek the Lord’s guidance on how to pray for your liberal(s), always allowing Him to temper your prayer with His love and mercy….”

You can see the chosen “liberals” (which includes two Republicans) they are urging Christians to pray for, here. Short of the theological loophole of asking “The Lord” to do the work for you, this pretty much the same sort of magic they damn the Pagans for. What a funny world. I suppose it’s better than the anti-Obama death prayers that some of ultra-right Christian groups have been engaging in.

That’s all I have for now, have a great day!

Way back in March of 2008 the town of Greece, New York had a problem. Americans United had decided to bring litigation against the Town Board for a policy of starting their meetings almost exclusively with sectarian Christian prayers. Hoping to avoid losing a lawsuit, the Town Board threw open their doors to any religion that wanted to give an opening prayer, even if they were Pagans.

“[Greece deputy town supervisor Jeff] McCann said the town has long used a list of worship services published in a local newspaper to extend invitations to local clergy for the meetings. The list offers little diversity, he said, and the town has had difficulty locating people from nontraditional faiths who may not have a physical church building they attend. “Now that the issue has gotten some publicity, we’ve had people call up and say they have an interest in delivering a prayer,” he said, adding that nonclergy, the nonreligious and anyone else who wishes to speak the pre-meeting prayer is welcome. “If a private person wants to come and say a prayer, they can come and do it.” Indeed, he said, next month’s Wiccan prayer was initiated by local resident Jennifer Zarpentine, who called town offices to ask whether she would be welcome at a meeting.”

So local resident Jennifer Zarpentine did indeed give an opening invocation in Greece, making her re-think the issue of sectarian prayers now that she was included.

“In just a few seconds’ time during the April Town Board meeting, Jennifer Zarpentine made Greece history. Zarpentine, a Wiccan, delivered the first-ever pagan prayer to open a meeting of the Greece Town Board. Her hands raised to the sky, she called upon Greek deities Athena and Apollo to ‘help the board make the right informed decisions for the benefit and greater good of the community.’ A small cadre of her friends and coven members in the audience chimed in ’so mote it be … Zarpentine said she was pleased by the opportunity to pray at the meeting. ‘I thought the invocation went well,’ she said. ‘The board was respectful;, they all bowed their heads.’ As far as the lawsuit goes, Zarpentine said the town isn’t being discriminatory. ‘They are including everybody,’ she said. ‘They asked me.’”

Americans United were, naturally, unmoved by the town of Greece’s recent inclusiveness, so litigation moved forward. This past Thursday Americans United and the town of Greece (represented by the right-wing Alliance Defence Fund) gave their arguments to a judge and are now awaiting a summary judgement in about six weeks.

“In the hour-long hearing, Richard R. Katskee, assistant legal director for Americans United, argued that the plaintiff is concerned not with prayer before the meetings but with sectarian prayers that have dominated the practice since Auberger started it in 1999. According to court papers, of 104 prayers from 1999 through 2007, none were non-Christian. Since the lawsuit was filed, the majority of the prayers have been Christian, with one being delivered by a Wiccan priestess and two others by non-clergy. Katskee stressed that the plaintiff is not against Christian prayer, but that the prayers have been aimed at one sect … Joel Oster, a senior litigation counsel for Colorado-based Alliance Defense Fund that is representing Greece, said that it is not right to ask the town to police the clergy. “It is not the town’s place to tell the clergy what to say,” Oster said. “It would cause a nightmare for the town.” Auberger has said that the town’s practice is to have an open invitation to any Greece resident to contact the town about giving the prayer.”

So now we’ll find out if a legal fig-leaf in the form of a single sectarian Wiccan prayer (amidst a hundred Christian prayers to Jesus) can aid this New York town and their socially conservative legal team overcome the AU and some pretty strong legal precedents in their favor. Will Greece’s “include a Wiccan” gambit work? Or will they be forced to switch to non-sectarian prayers? In about six weeks we get to find out.

Religion journalist David Waters, at the Washington Post’s “Under God” blog, weighs in on the First Amendment and separation of Church and State in the wake of Pace High School in Florida being forced to keep their ceremony secular (and several students saying the Lord’s Prayer in protest).

“I don’t know why so many (particularly conservative evangelical) students, parents and school employees find these distinctions so difficult or distressing. How would they feel if their Christian child were at a school where administrators or teachers were leading prayers to Allah? Or organizing activities to honor all gods and goddesses on Earth Day? Or inviting a Voodoo priest or priestess to cast an opening spell at their son’s or daughter’s graduation ceremony? They’d be the first ones calling the ACLU for help.”

This is a point I’ve made before, many Christian activists are all about “religious freedom” (the fake kind) until they’re presented with the consequences of real inclusion and religious freedom. You want Christian prayer at your governmental/or governmentally-funded meeting? You better invite the Wiccans, Hindus, Buddhists, and atheists along too. Better still, just avoid the problem altogether, and keep these functions on the task(s) at hand.

Jacob Davis, a Wiccan student at Southeastern Local Schools in Ohio, challenged the traditional Christian clergy-led prayer at his school’s graduation ceremony, saying he’d prefer a moment of silence instead.

“Traditionally, the school has had a reverend deliver an invocation and benediction at the ceremony, but the practice recently was challenged by senior Jacob Davis. Davis, who raised his concerns in a Letter to the Editor at the Chillicothe Gazette, had conducted a petition of classmates for a moment of silence instead, gathering about 44 signatures. Principal Leonard Steyer was prepared to make a decision about the prayer Friday when he received a copy of a letter faxed to the district Thursday by a staff attorney for Americans United for the Separation of Church and State … Davis, a practicing Wiccan, said he is uncomfortable being asked to participate in a Christian prayer at his graduation, and contends the tradition violates separation of church and state provisions. “I think the best thing to do is have no other prayer,” Davis said … Davis indicated a student-led prayer wouldn’t bother him (even though he wouldn’t partake) because the student would be exercising his or her right to free speech.”

Davis was supported by the Lady Libery League and Americans United in his request, and it looks like his efforts were successful because Superintendent Brian Justice announced yesterday that no clergyperson will give an invocation or benediction.

“Southeastern High School graduates will not have a clergyperson delivering an invocation and benediction at their ceremony. Superintendent Brian Justice explained Wednesday he and the board are not anti-prayer, but are obliged to follow the law. “We will not violate the laws … (I and) my board of education believe in prayer, but we’re not for violating the law. Are we happy about it? No,” Justice said. Issues over the school’s tradition were raised by senior Jacob Davis, a practicing Wiccan, who felt the prayer violated the law and provisions for the separation of church and state. Davis issued his concerns through a letter to the editor to the Chillicothe Gazetteabout two weeks ago before speaking with administrators, Justice said.”

This most likely won’t eliminate prayer at the ceremony, no doubt one of the student speakers will decide to invoke Jesus or God during their time on-stage, but Davis has managed to remove school-sponsored public (Christian) prayer. Further, Davis has proven that only by speaking out and risking criticism and mockery (and I can only imagine some of the hate-mail Davis will be receiving in the weeks to come) can you effect the change you want to see in the world. Before now no one bothered to do anything about the school-sponsored clergy-led invocations and benedictions, it was considered a “tradition” and one that even non-Christian students probably didn’t give much thought to. But thanks to Davis the lulling refrain of “this is how we’ve always done it” has been challenged and the assumption of Christian adherence removed from the school’s functions. Speaking out may not always get you what you want right away, but sometimes merely speaking out (and a faxed letter from Americans United) does work.

It looks like the Obama administration really will be taking a different direction than the Bush administration in handling this year’s National Day of Prayer (held on the first Thursday of May every year). Officials have stated that Obama will release a proclamation this Thursday, but won’t be hosting a ceremony.

“The Obama administration says it will issue a proclamation marking the National Day of Prayer on Thursday (May 7), but appears to be moving away from the White House ceremonies hosted by former President George W. Bush. “President Obama is a committed Christian and believes that we should be engaging Americans of faith in efforts to renew our country,” a White House official said.”

Prominent conservative Christians (most notably National Day of Prayer Task Force head Shirley Dobson) who have greatly benefited from White House photo-ops in years past have already arranged independent events while insinuating that Obama isn’t properly committed to Sparkle Motion prayer.

“We are disappointed in the lack of participation by the Obama administration,” Shirley Dobson said in a statement issued by the task force on Monday. “At this time in our country’s history, we would hope our president would recognize more fully the importance of prayer.”

This shift will certainly make it harder for the Dobson-backed National Day of Prayer Task Force to present itself as the official White House-backed organizer of this annual event and attack politicians who don’t fall into line with their goals and values. One hopes this will lead to a nationwide call to prayer that is inclusive of all faiths, instead of empowering and enriching an organization that purposely excludes other religions. Will Obama’s proclamation include overtures to non-Christian faiths? Considering Obama’s nods to Hindus and Buddhists in past speeches, and the inclusion of yoga at the White House Easter event, I’m hopeful. But we’ll have to wait for Thursday and see.