Opinion ID: 222596
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: The Content of the Prayers

Text: It is in this environment that the School Board delivers its prayers. The Policy places several limits on the prayers that are recited. [5] By its terms, it permits a wide range of prayers  they may be sectarian or non-sectarian, denominational or non-denominational and may refer to specific religious entities by name. JA 0062. However, the prayer may not be used or exploited to proselytize, advance or convert anyone, or to derogate or otherwise disparage any particular faith or belief. JA 0062. While by its terms the Policy permits nearly any type of prayer, the record shows that the prayers recited at the meetings nearly always  and exclusively  refer to Christian concepts. The record contains several examples of prayers given by different Board Members. On February 22, 2005, Board Member Helms recited the following prayer: Heavenly Father, Lord our God. Heavenly Father, please help the Board with the problems in the School District that we are going through right now. We ask these things in Jesus' Name. Indian River, 685 F.Supp.2d at 530. In June 2006, a Board Member offered the following prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, among Your many blessings, we thank You for the beautiful summer weather and especially for the much needed rain. We thank You also for the wonderful school year that has just ended with so many successes, awards, and accomplishments of our students and staff once again. We ask Your continued blessings on those among us who have devoted so much time, energy, and expertise to the betterment of this district and who are now stepping down. Given [sic] them peace, health, and happiness in the days to come. Be with our people who have suffered illness or injury this year, and grant them a quick return to normal life. Comfort the families of those who are lost to us and give them strength in their time of grief. Protect all who are here and return them to us safely in the fall. We ask that You continue to guide and direct us in ... our decision-making, so that every child in this district receives the educational skills to be all he/she can be. We ask these things and all others in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. Id. at 547 (ellipsis in original). As the District Court found, [i]t is undisputed that some Board members choose to invoke the name `Jesus,' `Jesus Christ,' `Heavenly Father,' or `Lord our God' during their prayers. Id. at 530. This is confirmed by testimony from the Board's members. In his deposition, Bireley stated that, in the nearly thirty years he had been on the Board, he could not recall a time when three of the current Board Members regularly responsible for the prayer had given a prayer that failed to invoke the name of Jesus Christ. Similarly, Board Member Cohee, who sat on the board from 1993 through approximately 2004 testified that the `majority' of Board prayers have been `Christian' during his service. Indian River, 685 F.Supp.2d at 541. He acknowledged that during his time he could not recall a spoken prayer being given that did not refer to [a] religious deity other than Jesus or the Christian God. JA 519. At the time of the original litigation, the responsibility for reciting the prayer alternated between Board Members Reginald Helms, Nina Lou Bunting, Donald Hattier, and Donna Mitchell. Helms testified that he was responsible for six of the prayers in the fifteen Board meetings held between July 2005 and October 16, 2006, and at all six meetings he pray[ed] in the name of Jesus Christ, JA 780. During her deposition, Bunting explained, I could not give what I would call a non-sectarian prayer, because I would have to mention Jesus Christ in my prayer, and I would consider that a sectarian prayer. So if I gave a prayer it would have to be sectarian and not non-sectarian. JA 469. Dr. Hattier did not present any testimony of the type of prayer that he typically offers except to suggest that they are usually historical. JA 656. The record contains two examples of historical prayers recited by Board Members. At the public Board meeting that took place on March 22, 2005, Board Member Walls recited a prayer from a speech given by Martin Luther King: God does not judge us by the separate incidences or the separate mistakes that we make, but by the total bent of our lives. In the final analysis, God knows that his children are weak and they are frail. In the final analysis what God requires is that your heart is right. JA 364. Board Member Walls followed this with a brief statement of the prayer's significance: As we gather here this evening, let us take these words to heart and put the best interests of the students, teachers, employees and residents of the Indian River School District ahead of our own. Amen. JA 364. On August 24, 2004, at the heated public meeting about the role of prayer in the District's schools, Board Member Hattier recited a historical prayer described by the District Court as a prayer composed by George Washington and contained in a 1783 letter to the Governors of the newly-freed states. Indian River, 685 F.Supp.2d at 529. While the Policy permits moments of silence to be offered in place of a spoken prayer, this appears to happen infrequently. In the thirty-six Board meetings held between October 2004 to October 2007, [three] opened with a moment of silence. Id. at 530-31.