The issue of prayers in council meetings

Yes, imposition was the word I was looking for.

Ana Can you explain why it is necessary or desirable to introduce prayers into council business?

It's just a prelude, prayers aren't being introduced into council business. Presumably some people do find the practice desirable. Those who don't can come in later (surely it's only a couple of minutes!).

I just object to any form of religious observance, anywhere, being made 'illegal'.

Surely all this praying in public is in direct contradiction of what Jesus is reported as saying about prayer in the Gospel According to Matthew. Surely, therefore, it can hardly be Christian. Or is that just another pick 'n' mix?

Who would decide on the prayers? Would they be Christian prayers? What if 75% of the Councillors are Muslim or Jewish or Hindu?

Over sixty years ago an American girl attended my school when her father was working in England, she said that she missed school asssembly when she was in America and had to start lessons straight away. I thought it odd at the time, but not now.

I like Nelliemoser's idea of mindfulness before the proceedings, people could silently pray if they chose, but anything that quietens the mind before making decisions sounds sensible, I know that some schools teach meditation and believe that it affects results.

Prayers would not be made illegal, ana. People can pray any time they like but sometimes it isn't appropriate to do it publicly during tax-payer funded council business time. It's only the public and during council business time that was ruled illegal. Prayer is not part of council business except privately by individuals. Only the person praying needs to know they are doing it. absent's remark is spot on.

It's the damned "in your face"-type praying people are objecting to. How would you feel about atheists having an in-your-face time during council meetings? Would that be appropriate? No, of course not. Neither is public religiosity.

I thought all threads were open to all thatbags in response to your post asking why the likes of me are f#@% around on this thread.

Perhaps what I should have said was I don't agree with the prayers but I'm not concerned enough to protest.
I'm not trying to justify a post that was meant to raise a smile. Just clarifying my opinion.

What about the councillor who is a Pagan [reformed] who can only pray in bushes?

Any prayers are out of place before a council meeting , they are not about to go to war after all.

Ridiculous practice - especially given the corruption in local government

Apparently some Conservative MP wants to make prayers in council meetings compulsory. Finger on the pulse of the nation... Not!

nina, the fucking around reference wasn't to anything you has posted. And it was meant to be a joke. You are, of course, quite right that threads are open to all.

Making prayers at council meetings compulsory could prove to be a bigger time waster than the meetings themselves often are. Start with Christian prayers (assuming all Christian denominations are prepared to share), then Muslim prayers, then Jewish prayers, then Hindu prayers, then Sikh prayers, then… depending on the make-up of the individual councils. Anything else would be unfair, unjust and elitist but I am not sure what the council could provide for its agnostic and atheist members. Of course, the order of precedence might have to change after each election. What a load of nonsense!

This member of the Tory party should shut up and go and pray for some common sense in private.

Doesn't God cover the lot of 'em?

But I can't see why they can't have a quick little pray on the way there. I bet some of them do. Probably along the lines of, "Oh God! Help me to get that stuck-up mare from finance off her high horse for once, "

Probaby, jingl, but whose god?

Their God. Whose else? (grammar?)

I thought it was all the one God. (not including Jesus of course)

Just different names.

'who's' ? That would be it. I think.

I'm still waiting to read about this on anything other than the NSS website, but if the report is correct it's obviously (to me) an amazingly stupid move on the part of the MP in question.

To give councils the choice to hold prayers before meetings is fair (which is not the case at the moment, as it's illegal), but to make them compulsory is unfair and would of course be appealed against. The man's an idiot!

No, jingl it's not by any means the one god even under different names.

Why is it 'fair' to make it legal for councillor sto group together if they wish and hold prayers as part of council meetings? They can (legally) meet for a prayer meeting outside of council meetings already, including just before council meetings and probably even in the council building in which they're going to have the council meeting. Why do they need another law to make it legal actually during council meetings when they are free to pray whenever they want already?

I'll answer that with what I think is the answer: they want to impose what they want on other people. They think UK CofE prayers at meetings are, or should be, part of national life. They are wrong on that score. The majority of UK citizens are not members of the CofE.

Nobody is interfering with their freedom to pray singly or together whenever they want, just not always as part of public proceedings. Their idea interferes with other people's freedom not to have to sit through prayers they don't want to be part of.

It's similar to the issue of banning smoking in public places. Smokers are still free to smoke. They are just no longer free to interfere with the smoke-free air that non-smokers choose to breathe. There has to be compromise to accommodate the freedoms/choices of as many people as possible.

if fairness is the issue.

Thank you for that pearl of wisdom absent. Very enlightening!