Reform Movement Condemns Supreme Court Legislative Prayer Ruling: Greece V. Galloway

David Saperstein: "An individuals belief -or non-belief - ought not be a prerequisite to accessing the political process." 

Contact: Sean Thibault or Sarah Greenberg
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WASHINGTON, D.C., May 5, 2014 - In response to the Supreme Courts ruling in Town of Greece, New York v. Galloway, Rabbi David Saperstein, Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, issued the following statement:

We are deeply disappointed by todays Supreme Court decision in Town of Greece, New York v. Galloway, upholding sectarian prayer before a legislative session. Writing for the majority, Justice Anthony Kennedy noted that requiring invocations be nonsectarian would call on the legislatures sponsoring these prayers and the courts to intervene and Ðact as supervisors and censors of religious speech.Ó Yet, Justice Kennedy did suggest there were limits to such prayers, among them: denigrating non-believers or religious minorities, threatening damnation, or preaching conversion - leaving courts in exactly the same role as line-drawers.

 

The record has shown that the overwhelming majority of prayers offered were Christian. That is why we were pleased to join an amicus brief to the Court, opposing the constitutionality of the town of Greeces practices, along with a diverse array of faith and religiously-affiliated groups.

 

An individuals religious belief - or non-belief - ought not be a prerequisite to accessing the political process. The Greece v. Galloway decision undermines the fundamental American principle of equal participation in government, regardless of the faith of the individual.