The Wild Hunt (https://wildhunt.org/tag/scotus/page/4)
On June 26, the Huntsville, Alabama City Council scheduled a regular monthly meeting to address typical city issues. The meeting, as always, was slated to begin with an invocation offered by a community member. On the schedule for June 26 was Blake Kirk, a local Wiccan priest and interfaith advocate. Two days prior to the meeting, the council secretary published the agenda online. That is when the trouble began.
On Monday the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) upheld the right of legislators to offer sectarian prayer before conducting business. The landmark decision overturned a U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in the now famous case, Town of Greece vs. Galloway. SCOTUS’ concluded that “the town’s prayer practice does not violate the Establishment Clause.”
The case began in 2007 when Susan Galloway and Linda Stephens challenged the town’s legislative prayer practice which, to that point, had only included Christian clergy. The case was heard by the U.S. District Court in Western New York which ruled in favor of the town stating:
The Christian identity of most of the prayers givers reflected the predominantly Christian character of the town’s congregations, not an official policy or practice of discriminating against minority faiths. The District Court also stated that the town was exempt from seeking clergy outside its own borders in order to maintain religious diversity.
On October 25, the United States Air Force Academy announced that the words “So Help Me God” would be optional when cadets recite the Honor Oath. Established in 1984, the cadet Honor Oath reads:
We will not lie, steal or cheat, nor tolerate among us anyone who does. Furthermore, I resolve to do my duty and to live honorably, so help me God. In an official press release Lt. Gen. Michelle D. Johnson said:
Here at the Academy, we work to build a culture of dignity and respect, and that respect includes the ability of our cadets, Airmen and civilian Airmen to freely practice and exercise their religious preference — or not…In the spirit of respect, cadets may or may not choose to finish the Honor Oath with ‘So help me God.’ Since that October announcement several media outlets and blogs mistakenly reported that it was the Air Force itself who had made “so help me God” optional.
Before I begin this week’s topic, I would like to acknowledge that today is Father’s Day. As with Motherhood, becoming a father is transformative and the beginning of a life-long journey. A very happy Father’s Day to all that walk that path offering a piece of themselves to the next generation. Now back to our regularly scheduled program…. Tomorrow is the 50th Anniversary of the SCOTUS ruling on the Abington School District, Pennsylvania vs.Schempp case. What’s that? This 1963 Supreme Court case is considered to be a major historical marker in the on-going struggle to affirm religious equality within American public schools.