Pennsylvania

ACLU Threatens Pennsylvania Town Over Lord's Prayer

The American Civil Liberties Union may sue a western Pennsylvania municipality because it opens its council meetings with the Lord's Prayer.

ACLU attorney Sara Rose tells the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review she's received a complaint from a Monroeville resident.

She says government-endorsed prayers violate the First Amendment, which courts have ruled bars governments from showing any kind of preference for a particular religion.

Mayor Greg Erosenko declined to comment, saying he'd have to consult with the municipality's solicitor, Bruce Dice.

Dice has said a Supreme Court decision allowing prayer at a New York town's council meetings makes it legal in Monroeville.

Rose says that's not accurate because meetings in Greece, New York, open with prayers from representatives of different religions.
 

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