Anti-religious group attacks Delaware County Commissioners

   Like hoards of locusts, the anti-religious group Americans United for Separation of Church and State, have struck again here in Ohio. Their target this time is the Delaware County Commissioners.

   Readers will remember that this same group threatened the City Council of Akron with a lawsuit if they did not do away with reciting The Lord’s Prayer before council meetings, which had been their tradition for more than 55 years. Unfortunately, the Akron City Council buckled to the pressure and discontinued the reciting of The Lord’s Prayer before its council meetings.

   The situation in Delaware County is much different. Due to the efforts of the Ohio Christian Alliance and the Alliance Defense Fund, the county commissioners have decided that they have every legal right and are on Constitutionally sound legal ground to continue the practice of praying before board meetings.

   Senior Counsel Michael Johnson of The Alliance Defense Fund stated, ““Instead of bowing to these radical demands, we are encouraging the commissioners to stand up for this most cherished American tradition.” The Alliance Defense Fund, through Attorney Johnson’s office, has offered their legal help at no cost to the County to defend the right to pray.

   Attorney Johnson went on to say that the Marsh decision, a Supreme Court case from 1983 in which the Supreme Court reviewed a challenge to the Nebraska legislature’s practice of opening each day of its sessions in prayer by a chaplain paid with taxpayer dollars. “Has been repeatedly mischaracterized and is often misunderstood, but its holding is clear. “ According to the opinion written by Chief Justice Burger, “The opening of sessions of legislative and other deliberative public bodies with prayer is deeply embedded in the history and tradition of this country. From colonial times through the founding of the Republic and ever since, the practice of legislative prayer has coexisted with the principles of disestablishment and religious freedom.”

   Delaware County Prosecutor Dave Yost said he is reviewing the matter, and he said he disagrees with Americans United. There was nothing in the threatening letter American United sent that alarmed him enough to advise Commissioner Evans to discontinue the prayers before commissioners' twice-weekly meetings. "The Constitution does not require that the name of God be scrubbed off of every brick in Public Square," Yost said.

   The Ohio Christian Alliance has learned that the anti-religious group Americans United for Separation of Church and State has individuals that monitor public meetings where prayer is recited, and then respond with a threatening letter. The intent here is to intimidate public officials into surrendering their Constitutional right to pray. OCA, along with the Alliance Defense Fund, pledged to continue to monitor the situation in Delaware County, and will be ready to defend the County Commissioners in the event of a legal challenge.