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May 3, 2007
Prayer issue could sink council
It's old news how the City Council voted to end a 40 year tradition, dumping the Lord's Prayer for a secular verse of dubious distinction. But old news or not, this issue isn't going to wrap the fish and end up in the garbage.
People most upset by the council's decision are Lowell's aging population who still attend church and value the structure and message that religion brings. These people see a steady assault on those values and they are fighting back.
The biggest problem the council faces is that these older people are the most dependable voters in Lowell elections.
"They won't forget, let me tell you that." The words are from Rev. Nick Sannella, the pastor at Immaculate Conception Church on East Merrimack Street in Lowell.
Sannella defended the Lord's Prayer as a universal, if not Christian, prayer for all people. The council, relying on an opinion from City Solictor Christine O'Connor, felt the prayer was unconstitutional in that it could be offensive to non-Christians and non-Catholics.
Sannella said many of his parishioners are planning to weigh in on the issue in the citywide election. He said he is not orchestrating any political movement on his own. "But these people have made it clear to me that they will vote their conscience, strictly on this issue. That is their right."
Sannella is opposed to a non-sectarian prayer, adopted by the council to start each Tuesday night meeting. "They should have done away with the prayer entirely. Now they have made a choice and that choice means they've taken another prayer over the Lord's Prayer."
Some people say the council was caught in a no-win situation. If so, members could have minimized the fallout by educating the public about the issue. Instead they dumped it in a subcommittee, kicked it around among themselves, and waited for O'Connor's opinion that lined up with the politically correct crowd.
Also, the council failed to realize the emotional - not political - tug the Lord's Prayer has on the voting crowd.
The way things are going in Lowell's elections, with fewer and fewer voters, a 100-vote swing could cost someone a seat. It's possible the Lord's Prayer might get the final say in November.
Posted by JimC at May 3, 2007 3:31 PM
Comments
Give me a break! Talk about trying to turn a non-issue into a issue. You trying to sell newspapers or something?
The Solicitor didn't make a "politically correct" opinion. It was a LEGAL opinion that based on long standing precedent, it is unconstitutional for a government body to do a prayer.
While I think many people and the courts go way overboard with the notion of seperation of church and state, the Solicitor has no choice but to present the law as it is.
Posted by: Dr. No at May 4, 2007 2:09 PM
