For the time being, a federal judge agrees that prayer before Hamilton County, Tennessee meetings can continue -- setting the stage for a possible trial later on.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) filed a lawsuit against the county because it opens government meetings with prayer. The atheist group's request for a preliminary injunction to end the prayers has been denied.
Alliance Defending Freedom senior counsel Matt Bowman notes one of the complaints is that some of the prayers mention Jesus.
"Just because a secular group claims to be offended by hearing a public prayer does not mean that the prayer has to be silenced," he asserts. "Those who seek to [end] invocations made in a Christian manner essentially argue that the Founders violated the Constitution as they were writing it."
But the atheist group's degree of discontent goes even further.
"The challenge in this case was that no prayer at all should be permissible before the Hamilton County Commission meetings," the attorney reports. "The First Amendment certainly allows public officials to acknowledge our nation's heritage. The practice of opening public meetings with prayer has always been lawful in the history of this country, and it's part of our nation's religious heritage."
County commissioners will continue to offer prayer from various religious groups, pending the outcome of the case.