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Courthouse Bible plaintiff now targets Houston council prayer
Houston Chronicle ^ | Oct. 26, 2009 | MARY FLOOD

Posted on 10/27/2009 1:41:29 PM PDT by a fool in paradise

The woman who successfully sued to have a Bible removed from a Harris County courthouse display is now suing to stop city council from opening meetings with prayers that she believes are too Christian.

Kay Staley, a real estate agent and lawyer, argues religion and prayer are private matters that don't belong in government. She sued the city and Councilmember Anne Clutterbuck, saying the council's prayers are so overly Christian they violate the First Amendment separation of church and state. Clutterbuck was singled out for saying the Lord's Prayer.

...(Staley) argues the prayers are coercive to others who won't speak up for fear they will be showered with the same kind of hate phone calls she experienced when she sued Harris County in 2003. In that case a judge ruled that the Bible display violated the First Amendment by promoting Christianity and the book was removed.

The U.S. Supreme Court has allowed prayer at public meetings but said it is out of bounds to evangelize or promote one religion over others. Staley's lawsuit alleges more than 90 percent of the city council prayers are Christian.

She said she's offended because the praying goes against the teaching of Jesus. Heavily quoting the Bible, the lawsuit argues Jesus taught praying was not to be flaunted in public but to be done in private...

City Attorney Arturo Michel said the city's practices are legal under the First Amendment's Establishment Clause, which prohibits governments from endorsing or inhibiting a religion.

Michel, whose office will represent both the city and Clutterbuck, said the U.S. Supreme Court made it clear in a 1983 case about prayer at the Nebraska legislature that the tradition of opening prayers by various speakers is OK and is as old as the nation itself...

(Excerpt) Read more at chron.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Extended News; News/Current Events; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: churchandstate; citycouncil; houston; publicprayer

1 posted on 10/27/2009 1:41:30 PM PDT by a fool in paradise
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To: 1riot1ranger; Action-America; Aggie Mama; Alkhin; Allegra; American72; antivenom; Antoninus II; ...

More cheese and whine.


2 posted on 10/27/2009 1:41:57 PM PDT by a fool in paradise (I refuse to "reduce my carbon footprint" all the while Lenin remains in an airconditioned shrine)
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To: a fool in paradise

Just what is meant by “too Christian?”

If she wishes, she can always stay away from council meetings...or show up after the prayers are over.

The woman must have a lot of time on her hands.


3 posted on 10/27/2009 1:44:49 PM PDT by fatnotlazy
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To: a fool in paradise

I saw this earlier and I hope this bee-yotch loses her stupid “look at meeeee!” challenge.


4 posted on 10/27/2009 1:50:54 PM PDT by Allegra (It doesn't matter what this tagline says...the liberals are going to call it "racist.")
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To: fatnotlazy

“The woman must have a lot of time on her hands.”

These days, if she’s a real estate agent she probably does!


5 posted on 10/27/2009 1:53:03 PM PDT by Frank_2001
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To: a fool in paradise
I am not sure what she hopes to really gain from this, opening with a generic moment of prayer is not a violation of any rights. The attendees of the meeting do not have to pray along with those offering the prayer. Shoot, they can offer up a prayer to whatever they want or nothing at all, during the prayer time.
6 posted on 10/27/2009 1:58:24 PM PDT by dog breath
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To: a fool in paradise

She cites the Bible to stop public prayers? Oh boy, lady.


7 posted on 10/27/2009 2:04:36 PM PDT by ReneeLynn (Socialism is SO yesterday. Fascism, it*s the new black. Mmm Mmm Mmm.)
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To: a fool in paradise
She said she's offended because the praying goes against the teaching of Jesus. Heavily quoting the Bible, the lawsuit argues Jesus taught praying was not to be flaunted in public but to be done in private...

I'll counter with "Where two or more and gathered in My name, I am there in the midst of them."

8 posted on 10/27/2009 2:07:14 PM PDT by Zeppelin (Keep on FReepin' on...)
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To: a fool in paradise; fatnotlazy; Allegra

I wouldn’t buy a house from her in a great market...

I picture her walking down the street, and God being on his computer with his finger on the “Smite” key...

That bible she had removed was a gift to the city/county from a private citizen/entity, and the city/county put it up in that area way outside the doors to the courthouse in appreciation of that gift...

I assume since she is a lawyer, she was not very amiable to being reminded of her faith and beliefs while doing her lawyering...If she had to work in that courthouse and pass that reminder on occasion...

To which she is probably not getting too much work with either...

I’d like to tell her where she can shove her ideas...But that would not be very Christian-like I suppose...

And no, I was not one of the people a few years ago that was calling her and telling her all sorts of un-Christian-like things...

But that doesn’t mean I wasn’t thinking them...

God and I will certainly sort this disagreement out on his time-table...And I know I’ll get a big noogie for being such a pain...;-)


9 posted on 10/27/2009 3:32:43 PM PDT by stevie_d_64 (Go ahead, call me a racist...One more time...)
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To: a fool in paradise

Do we have a picture of this woman?


10 posted on 10/27/2009 4:24:20 PM PDT by classified
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To: a fool in paradise

The first amendment does not say “separation of church and state”. It says:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”


11 posted on 10/27/2009 4:44:15 PM PDT by Rocky (OBAMA: Succeeding where bin Laden failed.)
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To: a fool in paradise

Stupid woman, there is no such thing as separation of church and state and that’s goes for the article writer too!!


12 posted on 10/27/2009 5:04:02 PM PDT by swmobuffalo ("We didn't seek the approval of Code Pink and MoveOn.org before deciding what to do")
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To: stevie_d_64

“I picture her walking down the street, and God being on his computer with his finger on the “Smite” key...”

***

One of my favorite Far Side cartoons.

Yeah, we are all going to face our Maker someday. Just like me, she will have to account for herself on that day. Maybe sometime before she passes from this world, she will learn the errors of her way and do right. I hope so, but then again, I’m not going to hold my breath till she does.


13 posted on 10/27/2009 5:37:37 PM PDT by fatnotlazy
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To: stevie_d_64
A rarely-reported fact regarding Ms. Staley and the Bible that so offended her:
She never actually laid eyes on the Bible monument.

Makes me think that the whole lawsuit was a put-up job by the ACLU or similar pack of vermin.

14 posted on 10/28/2009 7:16:03 AM PDT by TheGrimReaper (Obama: A four-year "Amateur Hour".)
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To: a fool in paradise

She says it’s “too Christian” then quotes Christ about how to pray.

A lawyer and a real estate agent. Some are outstanding but most are useless. Anyway, she’s a real estate agent and a lawyer? Tells me she’s probably not capable of making a living doing either so she spends $25 to file a case against the city. I hope all of her Christian clients, if she has any clients at all, walks away.

Jesus did say to pray in private. I have to admit that but I don’t have to like this person who quotes Him.


15 posted on 10/28/2009 6:52:34 PM PDT by Terry Mross (I hate all politicians...including republicans.)
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