Posted on 03/08/2013 6:12:10 AM PST by Kaslin
The mayor of a Washington town has directed pastors to stop invoking the name Jesus Christ in city council invocations.
Don Jensen, the mayor of Longview, Wash., told the Kelso-Longview Ministerial Association that prayers mentioning Christ were not acceptable because they could expose the city to a lawsuit.
The decision has sparked controversy in the city located about 50 miles north of Portland, Ore.
Mark Schmutz, who pastors the Northlake Baptist Church, said if they cant speak the name Jesus Christ, association ministers will no longer provide the invocation.
We need to be able to speak Jesus name, he told The Daily News. Theyre asking us not to do what were called to do. This is the one and only true God. Were not trying to be against anybody were just being clear about what were for.
Local ministers have been leading City Council invocations for more than 50 years and until recently there had never been any complaints.
That changed when resident Dan Smith started raising concerns about the constitutionality of prayers that include the name of Christ and whether it was appropriate for the ministerial association to be responsible for the prayers.
I do fully realize that this may not be a popular thing for you to do, but as an elected public official it is the right thing to do, he wrote in a letter to council members.
Smith describes himself as a comfortable atheist and called the longtime prayers an embarrassment. He hinted that unless the prayers were dropped it might lead to a lawsuit.
The citys attorney said invocations are certainly permitted under the Constitution but what is unclear is whether the prayers can invoke the name of Jesus Christ.
Mayor Jensen told the newspaper he regretted having to issue the edict.
Its not my choice to stop this, but I dont know how we can put our citizens at jeopardy and cost our city and our citizens a lot of money, he said.
Jensen said the invocations set the right tone for their meetings and said it encouraged residents to be more friendly.
That statue looks like the one at Eureka Springs, Arkansas.
***The citys attorney said invocations are certainly permitted under the Constitution but what is unclear is whether the prayers can invoke the name of Jesus Christ. ****
When we first became a nation, were not the first laws passed by the new US Congress done in the name of the Holy Trinity?
And did not the Congress of the US authorize a printing of the Bible?
A lawsuit filed by whom? If the town asks Christian ministers to perform public prayers, what the heck did they expect!!??
Some Muslim or atheist must have threatened the mayor.
Again, the suggestion I've made many, many times is for the mayor/administrator/principal, etc. to grow a set and say to the offended party, "Your objection has been noted. Now go and get 51% of the people in town/school/community to agree with you then come back and see me. Have a nice day."
Just another step on the road to eliminating Christianity from the USA.
I was talking about the disciples who were brought in front of the courts and told to stop using the name Jesus Christ.
If I lived there, I would have to give this speech to the council:
“Jesus Christ, what’s wrong with you people? Why can’t I mention Jesus Christ in a prayer?”. Let the irony spank them.
“Just walk on into the showers there people. Do not worry. Soap will be provided” Jahwol. Sieg Heil!
It is the statue in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Click on the link for the article and then click on the photo
By whom were they told and can you please point to the verse
much ado about nothing. This is just being universal vs being one particular denomination.
Some of these objections are just silly.
If you don’t know this story, read the whole book of Acts- BUT I will give you the cliff notes.. it is, specifically, in Acts 5:42. :)
is a christian priest still able to do the invocation? yes.
so it is just “heavenly father” vs a mere name.
Actually I think it's 5:41
The way I look at it is that we are all already IN prison...So I do not believe in sitting their pulling my hair out wondering when someone will release me...
There IS a way out...And it is right in front of you, it has always been there, you just have to have the courage and faith to just do it...
And we want government approved prayer in school? There is nothing stopping kids praying in school now.
Eliminate invocations. Do city business. Pretty simple.
GTH
Aren’t you tired when one atheist sues and everyone gets scared. It is time for Christians to start suing those atheist wackos
So, this guy stands at the gates of Heaven and is told “You chose money over the simple use of my name. Many will come in. You won’t be one of them.”
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