Utah Leaders Try to Protect Prayers at Government Meetings

Governments should keep the right to start a meeting with a prayer, argue Utah’s two senators and the state’s attorney general in briefs filed with the U.S. Supreme Court.

 
The nine justices are expected to hear a case in October involving the town of Greece, N.Y. An appellate court ruled the town violated the Constitution’s prohibition on the establishment of religion by starting its board meetings with predominantly, but not exclusively, Christian prayers.
 
That ruling contradicts other decisions, including the 1983 Supreme Court case Marsh v. Chambers, which upheld the right to start a legislative gathering with a prayer because of the "unambiguous and unbroken history" dating back to the first Congress.
 
Sens. Orrin Hatch and Mike Lee, R-Utah, joined 32 other senators in a brief filed Monday that argues the high court shouldn’t change the long-standing precedent.