In Lancaster, CA, many argue that Mayor R. Rex Parris is attempting to make the town a “Christian” community by supporting a ballot initiative that would make prayer—including prayer invoking a specific deity—mandatory at all city meetings:
The measure Parris promotes was placed on the April ballot after the American Civil Liberties Union opposed Lancaster officials’ opening government meetings with sectarian prayers.
Friday, a representative of Americans United for Separation of Church and State condemned the comments by officials of Lancaster, a largely conservative city of 145,000 north of the San Fernando Valley.
“There’s no such thing as a Christian government or an officially Christian community in the United States,” said Rob Boston, a senior policy analyst for Washington, D.C.-based Americans United. “Our Constitution is a secular document establishing religious freedom for everybody.
“Any politician who thinks his job is to act like a pastor is seriously misguided and probably needs to get out of office.”
See the full article here.
