(The Washington Post) – The Supreme Court ruled last week that nonbelievers and those of other religions had no reason to be unduly disturbed if a government meeting opened with a Christian prayer.
Without more overt actions, there was no reason to see such invocations as government endorsement of a particular religion, Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote. And offended adults could simply leave that portion of the meeting or quietly let the time pass without being seen as endorsing the religious message delivered, he said.
“Our tradition assumes that adult citizens, firm in their own beliefs, can tolerate and perhaps appreciate a ceremonial prayer delivered by a person of a different faith,” he wrote.
The court’s decision, with its five most consistent conservatives seeming comfortable with the historical mingling of government and religion, cheered those who have other matters for the justices.
Crosses, for instance.