Praise Jesus -- Allah, Ra, Krishna, Yahweh and whomever else in whose name people gather to worship -- but we might mercifully be nearing the end of a divisive and unnecessary fight over prayer.
Just don't do your praising at a public meeting.
A few courageous locals challenged in court the practice of allowing sectarian prayer to open meetings of the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners. Not surprisingly, the vast majority of clergy members who had been praying made specific references to Jesus.
The battle lines were hardened when commissioners in March 2007 created a formal policy allowing clergy members to make whatever specific references they want in their prayers. The commissioners thought the policy would withstand court scrutiny.
They were wrong.
Federal Judge James Beaty Jr. of the U.S. Middle District of North Carolina ruled Thursday afternoon that the practice of allowing sectarian prayer violates a clause in the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment regarding the establishment of religion and free exercise thereof.
Beaty's ruling, of course, could have the opposite effect and cost hundreds of thousands in tax dollars in a protracted legal appeal. Is that really the best use of taxpayer money?
Fight or cut the losses?
However you feel about the issue, you probably know that this particular battle pits the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State against the Alliance Defense Fund (a Christian legal organization that has provided a lawyer to defend the county) and a consortium of local ministers who view the court's ruling as an affront.
Filed in 2007, the lawsuit by the citizens with the help of the ACLU meandered through the system until Beaty's ruling, which determined that the county was favoring one brand of faith over others -- a clear violation of religious no-fly zones.
More ominously, Beaty also said that the plaintiffs can apply for damages and reimbursement of their attorneys' fees.
That's where it gets interesting. An ACLU lawyer estimated that the civil-liberties organization has racked up $100,000 in legal expenses.
The problem is, the Alliance has said that it won't cover the ACLU's costs in the event of a loss, and a local fund set up for such a purpose has about $55,000 in it.
Which brings us to the next question:. Should Beaty's decision be viewed as a first-round TKO or should the county climb up off the canvas to file an appeal, a move that could double the legal cost in the first round alone, and conceivably soar past the $500,000 mark should the case go to the U.S. Supreme Court?
Some people -- notably Commissioner Debra Conrad -- want to plow ahead, cost be damned. Others, most vocally Chairman Dave Plyler, say that unless enough money to cover all potential expenses shows up in an escrow account somewhere, it's time to cut the losses.
One man's view
I'm no theologian -- four years of study under Xaverian brothers in a Catholic high school notwithstanding -- but my take on this situation boils down to a phrase made popular on wristbands and t-shirts a few years back.
WWJD: What Would Jesus Do?
The way I figure it, the Jesus I learned about is sick and tired of centuries of fighting and killing in his name. He's probably none too thrilled about bickering over proper ways to worship, either.
I'd like to think that the Jesus I pray to most Sundays would much prefer that $100,000 in public money be spent on the neediest among us in his name rather than fattening the bank accounts of lawyers.
Obviously your Jesus, Allah or Ra might be different, and that's cool. The Constitution says we're all free to worship in a manner of our own choosing.
Here's another way to look at the ACLU legal bill thus far: For $100,000, Samaritan's Ministries can feed 57,471 hungry people; its average meals costs $1.74. That would amount to one-third of the number of meals it serves in a typical year.
What would Jesus do? Minister to the poor, the sick and hungry or go to the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals?
ssexton@wsjournal.com
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