Local officials have been granted permission by the U.S. Supreme Court to begin open town council meetings with a prayer, even if the prayers routinely stress Christianity, Fox News reported.
A New York State did not violate the U.S. Constitution's ban on government endorsement of religion by allowing prayers before its monthly meetings, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday.
As long as officials make a good-faith effort at inclusion, a 5-4 decision ruled that the content of the prayers is not critical, the court said on Monday.
A decision that is likely to guide how local governments throughout the United States handle the question, the ruling was a victory for the town of Greece, N.Y., outside of Rochester, Reuters reported.
"The prayer opportunity is evaluated against the backdrop of a historical practice showing that prayer has become part of the Nation's heritage and tradition," the majority wrote in the opinion. "It is presumed that the reasonable observer is acquainted with this tradition and understands that its purposes are to lend gravity to public proceedings and to acknowledge the place religion holds in the lives of many private citizens."
The majority justices further argued that the intended audience "is not the public, but the lawmakers themselves."
Monday's ruling was consistent with a 1983 Nebraska legislature decision which upheld an opening prayer and said that it is part of the nation's fabric, not a violation of the First Amendment.
Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing for the majority, said the prayers are ceremonial and in keeping with the nation's traditions, the Associated Press reported.
"The inclusion of a brief, ceremonial prayer as part of a larger exercise in civic recognition suggests that its purpose and effect are to acknowledge religious leaders and the institutions they represent, rather than to exclude or coerce nonbelievers," Kennedy said.
By opening nearly every meeting over an 11-year span with prayers that stressed Christianity, a federal appeals court in New York had ruled that Greece violated the Constitution.
