A divided U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Monday that local legislative bodies may open their meetings with mainly Christian prayers without violating the First Amendment’s bar against establishment of religion.
“Absent a pattern of prayers that over time denigrate, proselytize, or betray an impermissible government purpose, a challenge based solely on the content of a prayer will not likely establish a constitutional violation,” Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote for a 5-4 majority in the case Town of Greece v. Galloway.
