Editorial
Politics and Prayer
Published: August 2, 2011
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has underscored an essential boundary between church and state. In a 2-to-1 vote last week, the court found that the board of commissioners in Forsyth County, N.C., violated the establishment clause of the Constitution — “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion” — by starting its meetings with prayers “endorsing Christianity to the exclusion of other faiths.”
Legislatures have long opened sessions with prayers seeking divine guidance. The Supreme Court has dealt directly with this issue only once, in 1983. It approved of prayers before legislative sessions because the founders regarded them as “conduct whose ... effect ... harmonize[d] with the tenets of some or all religions.” But in related cases, the court has made clear that government can’t favor one religion. The Fourth Circuit observed that these invocations must not “repeatedly suggest the government has put its weight behind a particular faith.”
The dissent in the Forsyth County case claims that the county did not violate the establishment clause because it invited local leaders of each religious congregation to deliver a prayer on a first-come-first-served basis.
But the county hosted prayers that, almost four-fifths of the time, made sectarian references to tenets of Christianity. “Heavenly Father,” began one prayer cited in the ruling, “tonight we are so grateful for the privilege to pray that is made possible by Your Son and His intercessory work on the Cross of Calvary.” It went on, “And we’re so grateful tonight that we can look in the Bible and see how You instituted government.”
The county’s practice favored what the Fourth Circuit describes as “the majoritarian faith in the community at the expense of religious minorities.” The Fourth Circuit deserves credit for saying that a government that favors one faith flouts the inclusive nature of American government, harming church and state.
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Home > LI Confidential > Stop scratching on holidays
Stop scratching on holidays
Published: June 1, 2012
Off Track Betting in New York State has been racing into a crisis called shrinking revenue. Some people have spitballed a solution: Don’t close on holidays.
New York State Racing Law bars racing on Christmas, Easter and Palm Sunday, and the state has ruled OTBs can’t handle action on those days, even though they could easily broadcast races from out of state.
“You should be able to bet whenever you want,” said Jackson Leeds, a Nassau OTB employee who makes an occasional bet. He added some irrefutable logic: “How is the business going to make money if you’re not open to take people’s bets?”
Elias Tsekerides, president of the Federation of Hellenic Societies of Greater New York, said OTB is open on Greek Orthodox Easter and Palm Sunday.
“I don’t want discrimination,” Tsekerides said. “They close for the Catholics, but open for the Greek Orthodox? It’s either open for all or not open.”
OTB officials have said they lose millions by closing on Palm Sunday alone, with tracks such as Gulfstream, Santa Anita, Turf Paradise and Hawthorne running.
One option: OTBs could just stay open and face the consequences. New York City OTB did just that back in 2003. The handle was about $1.5 million – and OTB was fined $5,000.
Easy money.
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