You know it’s coming. You know they would be lying if they said otherwise. Husted said he will ignore the 12 year old guide lines. Yet the issue came because Dem Redfern choice to make it an issue. In question is “what does it mean to be ‘
[Cincinnati.com] COLUMBUS – Ohio’s House speaker will ignore a 12-year-old guideline that prayers given by visiting clergy before legislative sessions be nonsectarian and non-denominational, although he asks that they not mention specific legislation or advocate certain positions.
The policy could rest on uncertain legal ground, as some courts have ruled that legislative prayer should not proselytize or reference a specific deity. Other courts, however, have said sectarian prayer is constitutional – as long as legislators allow prayers from various religions.
House Speaker Jon Husted, a Republican from Kettering, spent the summer mulling over the prayer policy after a prayer by a visiting clergy member in May caused two Democrats to walk off the chamber floor. The prayer invoked Jesus’ name, spoke favorably of church-sponsored schools and referenced pending legislation clamping down on strip-club operations.
Each House session starts with a prayer. The new policy went into effect when legislators returned to the house in September after their summer recess.
“I’m not going to get in the business of censoring people’s prayers,” Husted said. “The most important goal was to make sure we preserve prayer in a way that made sure people had their freedom of expression.”
Husted decided against hiring a chaplain, which the House had until 1995, when guest clergy began giving the prayer according to the nonsectarian guidelines.
He said he wanted to err on the side of providing an open environment for prayer without censorship.
Chris Redfern of Catawba Island and Bob Hagan of Youngstown, the two House members who walked out during the May prayer, declined to comment on Husted’s new policy.
The new policy won’t immediately inspire litigation, but could eventually lead there, said Chris Link, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio.
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