"On 10 May 10, the Christian Coalition of America reported that, “senior citizens at a Georgia rest home have been told by a company that contracts with the city of Port Wentworth that, since the meals they provide are primarily subsidized by the federal government, they should not openly pray before meals.”
According to a 10 May 10, FOX News report, “Officials from Senior Citizens Inc., which operates the center, had said the meals they provide to visitors are mostly covered with federal money -- so saying a communal prayer before chowing down violated the First Amendment separation of church and state.”
As the issue was being reported, the policy was suddenly reversed. FOX News reported an update which quoted the following statement from Senior Citizens Inc., “Over our years of service, we have been instructed, as recently as two weeks ago, by the state regulatory agency that verbal prayer was not allowed at any senior center. We are so pleased to say that we have been contacted a few minutes ago by the new Director of Aging clarifying the regulation and reversing the position of new verbal prayer.”
A 12 May 10, Liberty Counsel press release indicated, the Liberty Counsel was partially responsible for the policy reversal. The Liberty Counsel is a “a nonprofit litigation, education and policy organization dedicated to advancing religious freedom, the sanctity of human life and the family.” The release stated that Liberty Counsel had “educated and encouraged” local leadership concerning the issue.
The release quoted Mathew Staver, Founder of Liberty Counsel and Dean of Liberty University School of Law, who commented, “We are pleased that the seniors can once again pray over their meals. But, we are astounded the seniors were told that they could only have a moment of silence. The so-called ‘separation of church and state’ mantra has worn thin. It now conjures up the ridiculous. It is past time to abandon this phrase and return to a common sense historical approach to the Constitution.”
A 15 May 10, SavannahNow.com article related that the issue had its roots in the Older Americans Act. The article stated that Patti Lyons, executive director of Senior Citizen's Inc., pointed to the ambiguity of a line of the Act.
The section to which Lyons refers pertains to contracting with private nonprofit agencies or organizations and the authority to pay for projects, “except projects involving the construction, operation, or maintenance of any facility used or to be used as a place for sectarian religious instruction or worship.”
Lyons was quoted as saying, "Our thoughts had always been that prayer isn't a form of religious worship, but I could see how someone would interpret it that way."
The First Amendment states in part, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech,...” Following the logic of those who were interpreting the Constitution, the Older Americans Act and establishing policy for seniors; if government funds food for a citizen and that citizen prays over the food, then, the act has the same force and effect of Congress making law to establish a religion for the land. Continuing this logic into other government programs, if someone receives food stamps or government funded school lunches, they too forfeit their right to pray over such meals. One must wonder where the part about making no law “prohibiting the free exercise [of religion]; or abridging the freedom of speech,” got lost.
In the end, the policy was reversed, but the concern for Christians is how such logic continues to surface.
[The free exercise of religion means that government cannot impose a religion upon its citizens, yet, somehow, some seek to interpret that prohibition as meaning government cannot allow any practice of religion in the presence of government. How is it that religion is freely exercised when it is silenced? -- Prayer Soldier]
Cited Articles and Posts
Christian Coalition of America (10 May 10)
http://www.cc.org/blog/seniors_georgia_told_not_pray_federally_funded_meals
FOX News (10 May 10)
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/05/10/prayers-answered/
Liberty Counsel (12 May 10)
http://www.lc.org/index.cfm?PID=14100&PRID=938
Savannahnow.com (15 May 10)
http://savannahnow.com/accent/2010-05-15/peeved-over-prayer
US Department of Labor (28 Jul 03)
http://www.thecre.com/fedlaw/legal12/42_3056.htm
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