15-2808 Invocation Policy - Laserfiche WebLink

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personal beliefs for vague and artificial ones." Id. at 1822. Further, the Court stated: "Once it invites prayer into the public sphere, government must permit a prayer giver to address his or her own God or gods as conscience dictates." Id. at 1822; and WHEREAS, this City Commission is not establishing a policy that defines the constitutional limits for permissible public invocations; rather, this City Commission intends to adopt guidelines that are consistent with the guidance provided by several courts that have considered the validity of public invocations; and WHEREAS, numerous courts have approved an invocation practice that incorporates a neutral system to invite religious leaders from the local community and volunteers to provide an invocation before public meetings. Town of Greece; see also Simpson v. Chesterfield Cmy. Bd. of Supervisors, 404 F.3d 276 (4th Cir. 2005), cert denied, 546 U.S. 937 (2005); Pelphrey v. Cobb Cnty., 547 F.3d 1263 (11th Cir. 2008); Rubin v. City of Lancaster, 710 F.3d 1087 (9th Cir. 2013); and WHEREAS, the City Commission intends to adopt a policy that does not proselytize or advance any particular faith, or show any purposeful preference for one religious view to the exclusion of others; and WHEREAS, the City Commission intends to adopt a policy that will not demonstrate a purposeful preference for one religious view over another by not permitting the faith of the person offering the invocation to be considered when extending an invitation or scheduling participation; and WHEREAS, the City Commission provides all of its citizens, regardless of their religious beliefs, the free and equal benefits of citizenship, invites all leaders of all religious assemblies to volunteer to give a public meeting invocation, does not discriminate against anyone on the basis of their participation or non -participation in a public meeting invocation, encourages all invocation speakers to be respectful of those who may hold different religious beliefs, and prohibits invocations that intentionally proselytize or disparage any person, religion, or religious sect; and WHEREAS, the City Commission believes that clergy that serve the local community are peculiarly suited through training, tradition, and public service to petition for divine guidance upon the deliberations of the City Commission, and to accomplish the City Commission's objective to solemnize public occasions, express confidence in the future, and to encourage the recognition of what is worthy of appreciation in society. See Lynch v. Donnelly, 465 U.S. 668, 693 (1984); and WHEREAS, in further recognition of the diversity of ideas, viewpoints, and various beliefs and non -beliefs held within this Country, it is the policy of the City that the opening invocation and recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance be voluntary and allow participation from all that wish to participate, but otherwise allow non -participation and an opportunity to exit the City Commission Chambers during the opening invocation or recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance to any who do not wish to witness or participate in same; and 2