Faith once again an issue in Southern towns

A recent article in the Macon Telegraph details a new lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union regarding prayer invocations at the openings of Cobb County (Ga.) commission meetings. The suit was made on the basis that the commission's meetings exclusively invoke a Christian God.

"You're gonna find the same thing here, I'm afraid," said Monroe County Commission Chairman Harold Carlisle, who said his county meetings have opened with a prayer for at least the past 10 years - as long as he's been involved with the government. "I wouldn't dream of starting the meeting without it."

Some are led by elected officials or government administrators and others are offered by guest members of the clergy. One complaint in the ACLU suit is that members of the clergy are brought in to lead the prayer, and that an "overwhelming majority" of them are Christian.

In Bibb County, a different pastor delivers the prayer at each commission meeting, said Chairman Charles Bishop, a practice he said he has no problems with. A majority of past prayers have addressed "the Father" he said, but he wasn't sure how often they have referred specifically to Christianity.

Faith has always been a hallmark of the Southern community, and the region’s progressives would do well to keep an eye on such developments in the future. There is a very delicate relationship between faith and government, especially in the South, and the Center for a Better South promises to be a voice on constructing new links between faith and a stronger South.