Rowan Cnty. v. Lund

Counsel

The petition for a writ of certiorari is denied., Yet the decision below did not adhere to this historical approach. In ruling that Rowan County must change the prayers it uses to open its board meetings, the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit emphasized that the county's prayers are led by the legislators themselves, not by paid chaplains or guest ministers. This analysis failed to appreciate the long history of legislator-led prayer in this country, and it squarely contradicted a recent decision of the Sixth Circuit. I would have granted Rowan County's petition for certiorari., The Fourth Circuit held that it was not, for a "combination" of four reasons. Id., at 281. First, the prayers in Rowan County are given exclusively by the commissioners. Id., at 281-282. Second, of the 143 prayers that the Fourth Circuit analyzed, 139 "invoked" Christianity, only four were nonsectarian, and at least 11 " 'promote[d]' " Christianity. Id., at 283-286. Third, the commissioners "told attendees to rise and often invited them to pray." Id., at 286. Fourth, and finally, the prayers took place in "the intimate setting of a municipal board meeting," where the Board often exercises "quasi-adjudicatory power over such granular issues as zoning *2566petitions, permit applications, and contract awards." Id., at 287-288., For these four reasons, the Fourth Circuit held that Rowan County's prayer practice violated the Establishment Clause. Five judges dissented, contending that the Fourth Circuit's decision was inconsistent with this Court's precedents and this country's "long and varied tradition of lawmaker-led prayer." See id., at 301-323 (opinion of Agee, J.)., For as long as this country has had legislative prayer, legislators have led it. Prior to Independence, the South Carolina Provincial Congress appointed one of its members to lead the body in prayer. See Brief for State of West Virginia et al. as Amici Curiae 9 (States Brief). Several States, including West Virginia and Illinois, opened their constitutional conventions with prayers led by convention members instead of chaplains. See Brief for Members of Congress as Amici Curiae 10 (Congress Brief). The historical evidence shows that Congress and state legislatures have opened legislative sessions with legislator-led prayer for more than a century. See States Brief 8-19; Congress Brief 8-9. In short, the Founders simply "did not intend to prohibit a just expression of religious devotion by the legislators of the nation, even in their public character as legislators." S.Rep. No. 376, 32d Cong., 2d Sess., 4 (1853).*